LOST & FOUND PART 8
by DG Fisher
Summary: Adam’s heart is crushed by Marie’s murder and the search for the killers begins. Will more friends be lost in bringing Marie’s murderers to justice? And is it possible that the Cartwrights have yet to experience the most devastating blow of all?


LOST AND FOUND - PART VIII  
  
MOURNING  
  
Chapter 65  
  
Joe was worried about Adam and approached the cream-colored house slowly, not sure about what he was going to do or say. But what he did know for sure was his brother had received a report two days ago that had left him badly shaken. Adam was just not being himself.  
  
Nate had told him about the report coming in, but had no idea what was in it. His boss had refused to let anyone else see it and would not answer any questions about it either. The deputy was definitely worried and seemed to be glad that Joe had noticed and was concerned too.  
  
He went up the porch steps, and then went to the outer entrance to the tower office. Glancing in one of the narrow windows that flanked the door, he could see Adam in front of the opposite window. He was just standing there with his arms folded, staring. Joe took a deep breath and knocked.  
  
Adam called out, "Come in," but didn't turn around.  
  
Joe went in and made his way across the office to stand directly behind his brother. Adam only quickly glanced back over his shoulder, but he caught the sheen of moisture on his face.  
  
"Are you crying?" he asked without thinking, then winced at his own stupid question.  
  
"What was your first clue Joe, the tears? Can't get anything past you," Adam answered with a sarcastic edge to his roughened voice.  
  
Joe remained silent, not reacting to his brother's sarcasm, hoping he would keep talking.  
  
The silence continued for a while until Adam took a deep breath. "You know, you wouldn't have recognized Marie if you had seen her the way she was when we met."  
  
"When you arrested her for stealing?"  
  
Adam nodded. "I don't think she could have weighed more than seventy-five pounds soaking wet. And she wasn't really stealing. She knew I was watching her and made sure I could see what she was doing."  
  
"Why?" Joe frowned, not understanding.  
  
"Come on, Joe think about it. She WANTED to go to jail; at least there she knew she would be fed. But Marie never spent even one day behind bars. I took her home instead." Adam sighed.  
  
"Thea fed her as much food as she thought Marie could handle then put her to bed herself. Then she cried in my arms for about an hour. Marie's been a member of this family ever since."  
  
Joe's eyes narrowed, sensing that there was more to what his brother was saying than his words. He cleared his throat. "What happened to Marie wasn't your fault."  
  
"Damn it, yes it is! When am I ever going to learn to trust my instincts! I should have done whatever was necessary to keep her from going."  
  
"I don't see how."  
  
"Now Joseph, do you REALLY think I couldn't have?" he said in a low, hard voice that made the younger man feel uneasy, so he dropped that subject.  
  
Feeling frustrated that his brother was hurting so deeply and he could do nothing about it Joe said, "I wish I could go with Stu and Dylan."  
  
Adam abruptly turned around, his eyes narrowed and his face tight. "What?"  
  
"I said I wish I could..." Joe started to say, but was cut off.  
  
"No, you are not going to Earlystown," his brother said in a soft, ominously quiet voice.  
  
Joe's temper automatically sparked. "You can't stop me."  
  
Adam took a step toward him, "I'll break your leg if I have to, and if that doesn't work I'll lock you up."  
  
"You can't do that!" Joe protested and briefly wondered why he was arguing.  
  
"Yes I can. You don't understand the kind of power I have now. I can put you in one of those cells and keep you there for as long as a year and no one would be able to do a thing about it." He took another step forward and Joe had to fight the urge to back away.  
  
"Calm down," He said desperately, frightened by the fury he was seeing in his brother's eyes. Then he flinched when Adam grabbed him by the front of his shirt and lifted him up on his toes.  
  
"No, I won't calm down, and you'd better understand this! I lost my son. I lost Thea, but God chose to give her back to me. I lost Jerry and now Marie, but I'll be damned if I'm going to lose you too!"  
  
All Joe could do was stare, not daring to say anything else when Adam shook him.  
  
"Don't you get it? I spent a lot of time taking care of you and I've always felt as much like a second father to you as I do a brother." He abruptly let go and turned back to the window. "There, I've finally said it so you can go ahead and have a fit. But you will NOT be going to Earlystown. Those people are way out of your league and wouldn't even think twice about killing you."  
  
Joe stood there, his heart pounding with fear, and realized that he wasn't in the least bit angry. The raw pain he had seen in his brother's eyes before he had turned away made him understand just how much Adam loved him. Something he had never been completely sure of before.  
  
He moved forward slowly, and then cautiously put a hand on his brother's shoulder.  
  
Adam shook his head, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have taken my anger out on you."  
  
"What was in that report?" Joe asked quietly.  
  
"The eye witness account..." Adam's eyes filled then overflowed, but he continued to stare out the window. "She was calling my name, Joe. Dear God, she was calling for me...and I wasn't there to protect her."  
  
The anguish in his brother's broken voice pierced Joe's heart, but he knew there was nothing he could do. So he just stood there, shoulder to shoulder with Adam and stared out the window too, joining his brother in silently mourning for sweet Marie.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
AFTERNOON NAP  
  
Chapter 66  
  
Adam caught a bad case of the flu and had refused to go to bed until he was satisfied with the guards and the changes he had been making to the house to increase security. According to the information gathered from his informants, Simon Albrecht was still in the area and he knew the man was just waiting for a chance to strike again. And Adam was betting that Simon would choose to attack his family this time, especially the children because they would be much easier targets. His heart was still bleeding over the loss of Marie, and the sicker he became, the more his nerves tightened, so when Thea finally did get him to bed he was a nervous wreck AND seriously ill.  
  
The only way she had finally been able to force him to rest was to have Wes and Charlie come in from San Francisco again. She had actually only asked Charlie, not wanting to take Wes away from his newborn son, but both men had shown up at the door wearing sympathetic smiles and she had burst into tears to see them both. Thea's nerves were stretched to the limit too.  
  
Adam was suffering with a high fever and had developed a deep, rasping cough. To Thea's surprise, he just didn't seem to be recovering as quickly as he normally would, but at least he had been cooperating. Since Dylan and Stu had left for Earlystown the week before, she had been afraid her husband would refuse to rest until the two men returned. And she knew they would not be back for a long time, the work they were doing was by nature both slow and painstaking. No word about any progress in Earlystown had come in yet, but Adam still insisted Nate come to see him every day and report in.  
  
Wes was on duty during the day, and Charlie at night. Both men were happy with the arrangement and Thea was thankful when Adam finally settled down once he knew they were on duty. Eight days went by as Adam slowly recovered and on the next Saturday afternoon Thea helped him come downstairs and get settled on the sofa in his office.  
  
"Now remember you promised to stay here and rest. No sitting at your desk and working."  
  
"Yes dear," Adam said as he gave her a tired grin, teasing her - he knew she hated that phrase. But this time she only smiled, glad to see he felt well enough to be bad. "I'll check on you in a while to see if you need anything," she said as she moved toward the door and paused with her hand on the doorknob.  
  
"You promised...no working!" she said in a firm tone and just had to smile when he laughed at her, she usually used that tone when dealing with the children. Then he heard the door close softly behind her as she went back to her many everyday tasks.  
  
Adam sighed with pleasure as he crossed his legs at the ankle and folded his arms across his chest. Today was the first day he had actually felt any energy at all or had any interest in anything. He was just about to fall asleep when he heard a knock on the outside door to his office. He called out "Come in." and had a brief coughing fit as the door opened and Mike and John came in.  
  
Mike took a few steps in as John closed the door then the two of them looked around for Adam until he sat up. Then they hurried over as Adam lay back down.  
  
When the two were standing over him he couldn't help but grin at their expressions. He was reasonably sure what the problem was.  
  
"Do you mind sitting down? I feel like I'm the guest of honor at a viewing," he said and his deputies instantly sat on the low table in front of the sofa.  
  
"Alright, spill it. What's wrong?"  
  
The two men glanced at each other and said one word in unison..."Nate."  
  
Adam tried to hold back a laugh, but couldn't and ended up coughing again.  
  
"Geez, Adam. That sounds awful," John said, his blue eyes widened with concern. "Maybe we shouldn't be bothering him, Mike."  
  
"Yeah, you're right," Mike answered and they started to stand.  
  
Waving them back down, Adam did his best to get the coughing fit under control.  
  
"Go on," he said when he could finally breathe.  
  
"He's driving us crazy," Mike burst out with.  
  
John nodded in agreement. "I know you guys have been friends for a long time, but we just can't take his nagging anymore."  
  
"Nagging?" Adam asked carefully, keeping his breathing shallow, and knowing exactly what they were talking about. But he wanted to hear an explanation.  
  
Mike answered his question. "Yeah, nagging. He's inspecting our paperwork, our desks, our guns, and even our damn bullets! I'm surprised he hasn't gotten the idea of inspecting our underwear!"  
  
"And he's scheduling every minute of every day." John said with some heat and Adam was surprised. The smallest and youngest of his deputies had to be pushed hard to get this angry. "Instead of just handing out an assignment, he tries to tell us how to do it, when to do it, and then checks up on us almost every hour! It's no wonder we can't get anything done...we're spending all our time explaining what we did, what we're doing, and what we're GOING to be doing next!" Mike burst out laughing and John glanced at him out of the corner of his eye before continuing.  
  
"We know he's nervous being in charge and that he's just trying to do the best job he can, but couldn't you talk to him? Try to get him to back off a little?"  
  
Adam was just about to answer when he heard the outer door to the office bang open. Mike turned red while John turned white and they stood.  
  
"What are you two doing here?" Nate almost shouted as he stomped around the sofa, and then took in their guilty expressions. He turned his angry eyes to Adam who sat up and swung his legs down.  
  
"Nate, come here and sit down," he said calmly and the blond man slowly moved over to sit next to his boss.  
  
"Now," Adam said then had to pause to clear his throat. "I think Mike and John have something they need to say to you." He gave the two men a warning look and they quickly sat down again and glanced uncomfortably at each other, but neither spoke.  
  
Adam sighed. "Look, you three need to work this problem out because I have no doubt I'll be gone from the office for a long period of time again."  
  
"What problem?" Nate asked, giving the two deputies a suspicious look.  
  
John and Mike glanced at each other again and Adam was surprised when John was the one that finally spoke up. "Nate, I'm sorry but Mike and I just can't take it anymore. You are getting carried away with trying to control everything and it's driving us crazy."  
  
"I'm just doing my job," Nate answered, his chin stuck out stubbornly.  
  
Mike shook his head. "We know that, Nate, but we can't do our jobs with you on our backs all the time."  
  
"Well if you two would actually do your jobs I wouldn't have to keep after you," Nate started to argue and Adam broke in.  
  
"Alright, I can see this isn't going anywhere," he said and had to stop and cough. "Mike, John, you two need to be a little more patient with Nate. This IS his first time in charge and you can't expect him to handle things the same way I do." He took a few deep breaths, and then turned to Nate.  
  
"Now YOU have to learn to let the people under you do their jobs. You know as well as I do that Mike and John know what they're doing, you've been working next to them for years." He cleared his throat again before continuing.  
  
"I expect to see a little more cooperation from all of you and no more resentment." The three deputies were all looking guilty at his last comment, knowing what he was saying was true. "A large part of your jobs is managing to work together and I think that's what the three of you should be concentrating on until I get back."  
  
Adam leaned back, suddenly very tired when the office door that led to the sitting room swung open.  
  
They all turned to see Thea standing there, her eyes narrowed, her lips in a grim line, and a long-handled wooden spoon in her hand. "OUT!" she shouted at the three deputies, slamming the door shut behind her. All four men burst out laughing as the deputies scattered.  
  
"Look out boys, she's got the wooden spoon!" Adam called out as his men practically tripped over each other trying to get to the door first. She ran after them.  
  
"Can't you people ever leave him alone?" she yelled and almost managed to whack Nate on the behind before he could make his escape - Mike and John had reached the door first.  
  
The three men finally made it through and stumbled across the porch, they were laughing so hard.  
  
Thea stood in the doorway glaring at them. "And don't you dare come back until I say you can!" she yelled at them and all three called back, "Yes ma'am!" as they hurried down the steps and across the street, their good humored camaraderie restored by their narrow escape.  
  
Adam was still coughing and laughing at the same time as she turned back, shut the door, and locked it. "Honestly!" she said as she came over to put a hand on his forehead, checking for fever. He reached up to take her hand and pulled her down next to him.  
  
She looked up with a worried expression. "Are you mad?"  
  
He shook his head. "No, actually your timing couldn't have been more perfect," he said and suddenly turned to push her down on her back on the sofa. He scooped her legs up with one arm then stretched out on top of her.  
  
Clasping him loosely around the shoulders, she smiled up into his face. "I guess you ARE feeling better," she said and he just nodded before resting his head sideways on her chest. He sighed, yawned, and dozed off.  
  
Thea sighed herself and gently smoothed his hair back as she felt his forehead again. She smiled - he had no signs of fever and just needed rest now to get back to normal. Closing her eyes, she intended on resting for just a few minutes, but was soon sound asleep too.  
  
Some time later a tiny knock sounded on the office door that led to the sitting room. The two on the sofa didn't stir and the knock sounded again. When there was no answer the door swung open and Annalise slipped in. She immediately spotted her parents and tiptoed over to stand there smiling.  
  
To her, seeing them asleep on the sofa in each other's arms meant that her small world was coming right again. Her father being ill and unavailable had been a previously unknown occurrence and had upset her deeply.  
  
Her smile widened as she carefully leaned over and kissed each one on the cheek. Then she tiptoed away and left the room quietly in search of her uncle Ted. Someone had to take charge while her father and mother were taking a well-deserved nap.  
  
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Both Joan and Adam recovered within the next few weeks and Thea was relieved. She had worried incessantly, but took Ted's lecture to heart and let him help shoulder the burden of caring for her patients.  
  
Adam had been watching the two of them closely and was extremely pleased to see that his wife's brother was right. Using his resemblance to their father to overshadow her painful childhood memories was working and Adam was grateful. He could see the change in Thea in many ways, but mostly by a new air of contentment, and a slightly calmer attitude when dealing with her busy life.  
  
The only time he HAD seen her agitated was when Ted broached the subject of finding his own place to live. Thea hadn't exploded, but had vigorously argued with him. And when she finally understood he was only concerned that he had overstayed his welcome she had laughed and told him to stop being stupid. Ted only grinned and nothing more was said on that subject.  
  
Joan, on the other hand, didn't say anything about leaving and Joe continued to use any excuse to come to the house to see her. On this particular Sunday in mid August Joan attended church with the family and ran a gamut of hostile female glances when she appeared on Joe's arm.  
  
Hoss had taken to teasing his younger brother about his growing attachment to the full-figured, shy young woman and started in again at this Sunday dinner after Joan excused herself to go up to her room.  
  
Joe's eyes followed her as she made her way to the stairs and when he turned his head back he almost flinched. Hoss was sitting directly across the table and staring at him with that gleeful look on his face again.  
  
"I sure am surprised at you Joe. Never thought I'd see you keepin' company with a gal like Joan."  
  
His younger brother turned red and his temper sparked. "What do you mean by that?"  
  
"She's nothin' like the ones you usually go for." Hoss chuckled, "I bet this one's a real handful."  
  
Thea and Dora, who were sitting on either side of Hoss, leaned back in their chairs to glance at each other. They nodded at each other in agreement, then reached up to flick the back of his ears.  
  
"Hey!" Hoss yelped in surprise. "What did you do that for?" He turned toward his wife.  
  
Dora's eyes were snapping sparks at him. "You quit making fun of Joan, she's a very attractive woman."  
  
"I never said she wasn't!" Hoss protested and turned to Thea when she poked him sharply in the ribs.  
  
"Then why are you making fun of her?" Thea demanded, staring at him with narrowed eyes.  
  
"I'm not! I'm makin' fun of Joe. He's never had the sense to appreciate a lady like her before."  
  
"That's not true!" Joe burst out with.  
  
"Yes it is. The only one's you've ever been interested in were about as skinny and short as a first year saplin' or whispy like a weepin' willow tree."  
  
Adam started laughing, "He's got you pegged, Joe." Ben was just shaking his head and grinning at Hoss's descriptions, when Thea poked him in the ribs again. Hoss turned to see her scowling at him fiercely.  
  
"I'M short Hoss," she almost growled at him and was surprised when he grinned at her.  
  
"Yep!" Hoss agreed cheerfully. "But there ain't nothin' skinny or whispy about YOU Theadora." No sooner had the words left his mouth than he realized how they sounded and he turned bright red. Everyone at the table fell silent as he stared at her, horrified, and afraid to open his mouth again.  
  
Thea stared back at him with a cool expression for no more than a few seconds until she couldn't keep a straight face anymore. She burst out laughing and nudged his arm up so she could hug him tightly around the middle. "Thank you Hoss," she sputtered as everyone else, including Joe laughed. "From you, I'll take that as a compliment."  
  
Vastly relieved, Hoss chuckled and squeezed her back with his left arm while Dora nudged his other arm up and hugged him too. The two women exchanged grins then turned red themselves when Ben said, "Son, I believe you would call that a handful and a half."  
  
When the laughter died down, conversation picked up again, and no one in the lively group noticed that Joan had come down the stairs on the other side of the room. She watched them for a while longer from the shadows of the stairwell, and then silently slipped away smiling.  
  
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Joe and Joan slipped away from the rest of the family to sit in the front porch swing after Ben, Hoss, and Dora left for home. The couple sat in companionable silence, swinging lazily, and watching a brilliant sunset. Joe had his arm around Joan while she had the back of her head resting against his shoulder, and when the stars began to appear Joe knew they should go inside, but just couldn't bring himself to break the mood.  
  
For the first time she seemed to be completely comfortable with him and he desperately didn't want that to end. The past two weeks she had been skittish, relaxed with him one moment, then suddenly fleeing the next. He didn't understand it, but attributed it to her head injury and hoped things between them would stay the way they were now.  
  
Joan sighed and he turned his head to look down at the top of her head as she spoke.  
  
"Wasn't that beautiful? And why is it that sunrise always seems to pale by comparison?"  
  
He laughed softly, "I don't know and I've never thought about it before, but you're right."  
  
She sat up straight to turn slightly and take in his expression. Almost as though she thought he was making fun of her. But when her crystal blue eyes met his dark gaze, neither one could remember what they had been talking about. Her eyes opened wider and the black centers seemed to expand as she leaned into him and tentatively touched her lips to his.  
  
Startled, Joe held himself still, not wanting to frighten her away. But when she didn't pull back and slipped her hands behind his neck, he cautiously took her in his arms and slowly pulled her closer. Her lips softened against his and parted slightly. He gently slanted his lips over hers in response and his breath caught when he felt her soft warmth press against him more firmly. His arms tightened around her as he slid one hand up to press on the back of her head, deepening the kiss.  
  
They were so deeply involved in discovering each other, neither one heard the front door open quietly or were aware of Adam's presence until he cleared his throat.  
  
Joan jerked back with a gasp and would have fallen off the swing if Joe hadn't kept his arms around her. Adam laughed and Joe leaned back to take a deep breath to slow his pounding heart.  
  
"Hi kids! Having a good time?" Adam said cheerfully, half sitting on the railing and still laughing at them. Then both men were surprised to hear Joan actually giggle as she dropped her forehead to Joe's shoulder.  
  
"Sorry to break this up, but Thea sent me out here and I'm not going back in without at least one of you." He smiled when the other two laughed.  
  
"Alright, alright," Joe chuckled, "we wouldn't want to get you in trouble with the boss." He stood and helped Joan up - she was laughing outright now.  
  
"Thank you, I'll be eternally grateful for your kindness," Adam said sarcastically and made a sweeping gesture for the couple to precede him to the door. But as soon as they couldn't see his face, his smile faded as he acknowledged a deep feeling of unease. And this time he vowed he was going to pay attention to his gut instinct; he had learned a very bitter lesson when Marie was murdered. He would not let something like that happen again, no matter what the cost.  
  
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The clock in the second floor hallway chimed once when Adam started up that night. He climbed the stairs slowly and stretched, glad to finally be well, but was still thinking about Joan...and Joe. Walking silently down the hallway, he felt the urge to stop outside his youngest brother's bedroom door.  
  
He stood there for a moment with his head down, completely baffled as to why every nerve in his body seemed to be on alert. Deciding there would be no harm in just looking in on him, he silently opened the door and took one step into the doorway.  
  
The full moon poured it's light through the window next to the head of the bed and Adam could clearly see Joe sound asleep on his stomach, his smooth face and high cheekbones a study in silver and black. Taking a deep breath, he shook his head at himself and stepped back to pull the door closed. But he couldn't bring himself to walk away.  
  
He stood there, turning his head back and forth, listening for any clue to this irrational fear, but he heard nothing. Almost without thinking about it, he reached down with his right hand and turned the lock underneath the doorknob, then carefully pulled the door shut, hoping he wouldn't wake Joe. He listened for a minute and when he heard no sound of movement through the door, he finally relaxed and hurried into the room he shared with Thea.  
  
Less than an hour later a door opened and a bare-foot figure in a loose white gown seemed to float down the hallway quietly, her long almost white hair flowing in abundance down her back.  
  
Joan stopped outside Joe's door and stood there with her hand on the knob as she looked up and down. When she turned the knob and tried to tried to open the door but couldn't, an expression of unreasonable anger flashed across her face. In a second that look was gone and she turned away smiling. She sped back to her room with a hand over her mouth and her shoulders shaking with laughter.  
  
For the rest of the night the second floor hallway remained unoccupied, silent except for the soft chiming of the clock, and all the doors remained safely closed.  
  
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CORNERED  
  
Chapter 67  
  
Joe was up earlier than usual the next morning and he was whistling as he came down the back stairs to the kitchen. He was surprised to hear Adam and Thea's voices speaking low - his older brother normally would be gone by now. When he reached the bottom of the stairs and came through the doorway they both turned to look at him with solemn expressions. He instantly became worried.  
  
"What's wrong?" he said and hurried up to the table. Adam nodded his head toward the seat to his left and Joe reluctantly moved over to slowly sink into the chair.  
  
He glanced at Thea's now unhappy face, and then looked at his older brother expectantly. Adam cleared his throat.  
  
"Joe," he said quietly, his eyes dark with concern for his brother. "I'm sorry, but Joan's gone. She must have left at first light, before I was up because I didn't see or hear a thing."  
  
Thea was nodding in agreement while Joe looked at them with his mouth open.  
  
"I don't understand..." he started to say and couldn't finish as Thea stood to move around and stand next to him. She put a piece of paper on the table in front of him then slipped an arm around his shoulders. He stared down at the paper for a few seconds before picking it up.  
  
Dear Adam and Thea,  
  
Thank you for saving my life and for your gracious hospitality. I  
hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me for leaving like a  
thief in the night, but believe me this is the best thing for  
everyone.  
  
Please tell Joe I'm sorry,  
  
Joan  
  
He read through her note twice, and then startled Thea by angrily crumpling it into a ball. "I can't believe this!" he ground out through clenched teeth, his expression both hurt and exasperated as he let the crumpled note fall to the table. "What the hell happened?"  
  
Adam sighed, extremely annoyed at Joan and yet feeling oddly relieved at the same time. "I don't know," he said as he shook his head. "Everything seemed fine last night..."  
  
Joe shrugged Thea's arm off his shoulders as he abruptly stood. "That's it, I give up!" he said and turned to cup Thea's face in his hands when she was about to speak. "Forget it Thea, I'm never going to find someone and I just have to accept that fact." He gave her a rueful smile when he saw her eyes tear up. "Now stop that, it's not your fault. You gave me some advice I still believe was good, but just doesn't apply to me. Can't you see it's hopeless?" he finished then gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. Letting her go he moved around her to clap Adam on the shoulder with one hand.  
  
"Don't blame Joan," he said before starting for the back door, his back stiff with anger. "The fault is mine, it has to be. I don't know why I can't hold onto a woman to save my life, but for some reason I don't understand I can't."  
  
He opened the back door then paused when Adam spoke. "Where are you going?"  
  
"Home," was all Joe had to say in answer as he went through the door then closed it quietly behind him. Adam and Thea watched him hurry down the steps and stride toward the barn. When she made an odd noise, he turned toward her and could see she was struggling with anger at Joan and sympathy for Joe. He reached out to take her hand and pulled her down into his lap.  
  
"He's right, you know. You DID give him good advice and this isn't your fault."  
  
Thea nodded and slipped her arms around his shoulders then laid her head on his shoulder. "I know, but I just can't stand seeing him hurt like this!"  
  
He wrapped her in his arms to hug her tightly. "I know, I don't like to see it either, but..." he stopped abruptly and she lifted her head to look him in the face.  
  
"But what?"  
  
"You'll think I'm crazy."  
  
She smiled. "I already do!"  
  
"Very funny," he answered and thought for a few moments before answering her question. "I can't exactly tell you why, but I think there is something very wrong with that woman. And frankly, I'm glad things ended this way."  
  
Thea's smile faded. "Then there MUST be something wrong with her," she said firmly. "What that could possibly be, I don't know, but I trust your instincts."  
  
Adam sighed again. "I think Joan is right. I think this will be the best thing for everyone."  
  
Nodding quickly, Thea surprised him by pulling his head down and gently pressed her lips to his. He tightened his arms to pull her closer and she slipped her arms around his shoulders as the kiss deepened. Then they both heard giggling coming from the stairwell.  
  
She tipped her head without breaking the kiss, then pulled back. "Did you ever get the feeling you were being watched?" she said with a resigned expression.  
  
"Constantly!" Adam laughed and she slid out of his lap as he stood. Annalise and Alexander grinned at their parents from the bottom step where they were standing.  
  
"Alright you two, back upstairs to get dressed," their father ordered so they turned and quickly started up.  
  
Thea put her arm around Adam's waist and he slipped an arm around her shoulders. They smiled at each other, and then sighed in unison before starting to climb the stairs slowly and begin another busy day.  
  
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Stu sat in his boarding house room feeling incredibly restless. Just being this close, knowing that the men responsible for his mother's death were in reach was driving him crazy. Basically all he had to do every day was shadow his partner when he could and as the days passed his nerves were being stretched tighter and tighter. Yet he had to admit to feeling a great deal of admiration for Dylan, the young man's ability to shed his own identity and project the image other people expected to see was uncanny.  
  
Even though he knew better, he had almost been convinced that the former Dylan was the pose and he was now seeing the true man. But then they would meet as usual in the small hours of the morning and the deputy would be himself again.  
  
A quick tap on the door brought Stu out of his musings, but he didn't move as the red-haired man opened the door and quickly slipped in. He hurried over to sit down on the edge of the bed and leaned forward.  
  
"We're going to be finished here soon," he said, the excitement in his voice sparking the same response in Stu.  
  
"Tell me!"  
  
"In five days I will be attending a meeting and everyone associated with this group is going to be there."  
  
"But how are you going to identify the right ones? You haven't been able to so far."  
  
Dylan smiled a sharp smile, his dark-blue eyes looking almost black. "Ah, here's the best part. The meeting is being called to honor the members who recently 'struck a crippling blow against the increasing enemy.'" His face changed, becoming harder and older as his eyes gleamed with the pleasure of the hunt.  
  
Stu sat there staring for a few moments, realizing that there was so much more to the man sitting in front of him than he had suspected. He smiled his own version of that feral smile back.  
  
"You're sure..." he asked with a suddenly tight throat.  
  
"Oh yes, EVERYONE involved will be there..." Dylan was saying when they heard a noise in the corridor. Stu quickly stood and moved silently across the floor, while the other man moved out of sight.  
  
Carefully opening the door slightly, he peered through the crack, and then sighed silently in relief as he watched an elderly woman moving away down the corridor, her white-haired head bowed, and one hand gripping a wooden cane. The cane made tiny thumping noises against the carpet and her feet made a whispering sound as she shuffled away. He recognized the thumps as being the sound he had heard.  
  
He closed the door silently then turned to grin at Dylan. "Nothing," was all he said and the other man grinned in relief back.  
  
"I guess we're both getting a little tense," he said as he moved over to the bureau where a bottle of whisky and glasses stood. Quickly pouring a small amount in two glasses, he handed one to Stu.  
  
Dylan's expression suddenly became very serious and he held his glass up. "To Marie," was all he said and Stu paused for a second, startled.  
  
"To Marie," he echoed and the two men downed the whiskey in one gulp. Dylan picked up the bottle and his expression asked Stu if he wanted any more. Stu shook his head and set the glass down, glad that Dylan accepted his refusal without comment.  
  
The red haired man poured a full glass for himself and drank it down quickly and easily as if it was water while Stu moved away to sit in the chair by the bed again. Then he came over to drop down on the bed and fell back, stretching out with his hands behind his head.  
  
"Look Stu," he said quietly, "I know there's some kind of connection between you and Marie and I don't have to know what it is. But I DO want you to know I was very fond of her and respected her and I have no intention of letting these people get away with what they've done. Not while there's still breath left in my body."  
  
Stu smiled. Dylan was obviously drunk and had been even before he entered the room.  
  
"Losing that lovely lady put a huge hole in Adam's heart and I take THAT personally too. And those poor kids just can't understand why they've lost their Aunt Marie. They don't know exactly what happened, but they've heard enough to know it was something terrible. Even the triplets can feel it," he paused to clear his throat. "But most of all I can't stand seeing that devastated look in Thea's eyes every time someone says Marie's name. I've never been more furious in my life."  
  
He fell silent for a few minutes and Stu waited patiently, knowing more was coming.  
  
Dylan continued to speak to the ceiling. "I'm telling you all this just so you will understand that while I would like nothing better than to strangle each one of them myself, I can't look away and let you kill them."  
  
"I know," was all Stu said in response and the other man quickly turned his head.  
  
"Good. Adam expects both of us to uphold the law and it would reflect on him badly if we were suddenly to turn into vigilantes. That would embarrass him and I'd rather shoot myself than do that."  
  
Stu smiled. "I agree completely."  
  
Dylan's dark blue gaze locked with the other man's light brown.  
  
"I have no intention of embarrassing him. I owe Adam and Thea more deeply than you know. They gave my mother back the one thing that mattered most in the world to her...her dignity," Stu said quietly and watched for Dylan's reaction.  
  
The other man only blinked once before he allowed sympathy to shine from his eyes for a brief second. Then he turned his gaze back to the ceiling. "Dear God," he breathed, "I have absolutely no idea what that must feel like. But I do know this will be one of the hardest things you'll ever have to do in your life."  
  
"No doubt," Stu answered impressed. In his experience most people would automatically claim to know how he felt, even though they wouldn't have the first idea. But Dylan was too intelligent for that. He smiled when the man on the bed suddenly turned on his side to face him.  
  
"I don't have any family, just like most of the strays Thea and Adam have pulled in. And you know I think they do that because they both know what it feels like to be alone. That's why they're so quick to share."  
  
Stu relaxed back in his chair, sensing that Dylan wanted to talk, and maybe wasn't quite as drunk as he had thought earlier.  
  
"You're an orphan?"  
  
"Yes sir! Classic story - I was left on the doorstep of an orphanage."  
  
"What about the other deputies?" Stu found himself asking. Being secretive all his life, he had never poked into other people's lives before and he was surprised at himself for asking.  
  
"I don't know everything, but I DO know Nate had an uncle and his mother when he first became friends with Adam. But they're both gone and from a few things I've heard he also had someone he expected to marry, but lost her somehow." He paused to laugh. "Now Mike I know absolutely nothing about. I've never heard him mention anyone from his past, family or otherwise. On the other hand, John does have family, but from what I can put together it seems they are estranged. And seemingly for something he did. What that is, I don't know, but I can't see John doing something that would make his family turn their backs on him. Can you?"  
  
"No," Stu chuckled, thinking about the blue-eyed, baby-faced young deputy. "But then you never know with families. What's important in one isn't important in another."  
  
"True." Dylan agreed and they both fell silent for a bit.  
  
"I guess we should head back to Virginia City a few days after the meeting so we can get warrants and the manpower together. We don't want to leave too soon and draw attention."  
  
"No, and not on the same day either."  
  
"Good thinking," Dylan said and sat up with a groan. "I better get back to my room and get some sleep. One of those 'people' is taking me around to look at land since I'm fixin' to settle here."  
  
Stu laughed at the way Dylan's voice gradually changed as he spoke and fell into a different, slower cadence.  
  
Dylan swung his legs down and slowly moved toward the door, but turned around when he got there. "I won't say a word to anyone about what you told me," he said and gave the other man a quick smile before slipping out the door.  
  
Even though he listened closely, Stu couldn't hear a single sound from the hallway, and he shook his head. He better get some sleep too, he needed to be alert and keep Dylan in sight as much as possible to watch his back.  
  
Not bothering to get undressed, he blew out the lamp, stretched out on the bed, and was asleep in seconds.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
CONFLAGRATION  
  
Chapter 68  
  
The following days, waiting for the big "meeting" to occur dragged by almost unbearably for Stu. His nerves stretched tighter with each hour and he kept telling himself to calm down and relax, but his sense of unease grew. He had no idea what was making him so jumpy, but by the time evening fell and Dylan left for the meeting, he was as close to being completely unnerved as he had ever been.  
  
The two men had agreed that he should wait at least an hour before following Dylan to the old church where the meeting was being held. But thirty minutes later Stu couldn't take the tension any more and left his room to hurry to the barn and saddle his horse. On the ride there his nerves seemed to calm down somewhat, glad that he was at least moving, at least taking SOME action.  
  
He slowed his horse down to a walk then dismounted when he reached a small stand of timber near the abandoned church. Tying the reins to the nearest branch, he started silently through the trees, and the closer he got to the building the more his conviction that something was wrong grew. He stopped when he reached the edge and crouched down in the shadows to look around.  
  
Thin threads of light leaked through the shuttered windows, but the only sounds he was hearing were from the tethered horses and a strange crackling noise. He was about to stand and move closer when the cellar doors opened and he saw a tall figure step out backward, dragging a limp form by the arms. Stu froze, trying to assess the situation when a cloud of smoke billowed out the cellar doors, shrouding the two figures.  
  
"Dylan!" he shouted and stood to run toward the church. Smoke was now pouring out of every crevice and when he ran up the front steps he found the double doors chained together and padlocked. The wood was so incredibly hot to the touch he knew there was no sense in trying to get in that way, so he headed for the cellar doors. But the smoke was so thick he couldn't even get near them.  
  
He backed away staring, desperately searching for a way to get in when he tripped over a prone body lying face-down in the grass. Landing hard on his back knocked the breath out of him for a moment then he scrambled to his knees to turn the body over. In the bright moonlight he could clearly see the unconscious man was Dylan and he sighed in relief as the other man groaned then opened his eyes.  
  
"What happened?" Stu asked.  
  
"Damn!" Dylan said putting his hands to his head. "I don't know..." He groaned again as his eyelids fluttered down. Stu shook him.  
  
"Dylan, wake up! We have to get out of here!"  
  
The other man reluctantly opened his eyes again to look at Stu, and then they widened in alarm as his gaze moved over the other man's shoulder. A crushing blow to the back of the kneeling man's head knocked him down and he fell across Dylan, unconscious.  
  
Dylan grunted with pain when the heavy body slammed into his abdomen, and he turned his head to see a dark figure swing up into the saddle and take off. The thundering hoof beats were still sounding in his ears and he had just enough time to think there had been something vaguely wrong about the fleeing figure before he passed out again.  
  
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To say Brett Bierce was having a bad day would be an understatement. Ever since Adam Cartwright had tossed the reporter off the dock he had been trying with very little success to get his editor to approve his story proposal. Doing an in-depth piece about the federal marshal didn't seem to garner much interest with his superior, but after months of persistent effort, the man had finally given in to Brett's delight. He had gone to the Eden House hotel the very next day, hoping to speak to Wes Everest, someone who must know the mysterious man well due to their partnership. But only Dulcy had been available and when she realized that Brett was a reporter looking for dirt on Adam her face had gone stark white with fury. The next thing he knew, she had grabbed him by the arm, dragged him through the lobby, and thrown him out the front door. Brett had hit the sidewalk hard and rolled into the gutter. By the time he got to his feet he was almost covered in refuse, so he had called it a day and gone home.  
  
When he was turned away the next day by every business and every person who had known connections to the marshal he realized the word to keep quiet must have spread. Even his best efforts to obtain information from the lower levels of San Francisco citizenry had gotten him nothing but mostly blank looks and the occasional hostile stare.  
  
Lamenting the fact that he didn't have the money to pay for the information, he vigorously wracked his brains trying to come up with ideas on where to try next. No one at the orphanage, the publishing house, the shipping company, the gentleman's club, or even local law enforcement agencies had been willing to speak to him, so he realized he would have to go further. And further meant going to Virginia City, Adam's home and his new base of operations.  
  
After informing his editor about where he was going, Brett went home to pack, excited at the opportunity to speak to people who had known his target for many years. After all, considering the arrogant man's personality there had to be somebody in that town who would talk - he must have more than a few enemies.  
  
On the train, he carefully considered his options and decided that keeping a low profile would be best. Direct questioning would no doubt result in the same reactions he had encountered in San Francisco. So he would just keep his eyes and ears open for a few days, looking for likely prospects. He smiled almost the whole way there in anticipation.  
  
Brett hurried to the hotel as soon as he stepped off the train then ventured back out to look the town over. An hour later when he came through the swinging doors into the Sage Brush he didn't notice when a smallish man of average height with clear blue eyes stared at him intently for a moment. The reporter went directly to the bar to collect a beer before sitting down to unobtrusively survey the room. John had already slipped out the back.  
  
In a few minutes, the youngest of the deputies rushed into the meeting room where Nate and Mike were going over some paperwork.  
  
"Where's Adam?" he asked, his usually smooth brow furrowed with worry. The other two men sat up alertly.  
  
"He's in his office at the house," Nate answered. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Remember that idiotic reporter he threw off the dock? He's in town, I just saw him at the Sage Brush."  
  
Nate and Mike exchanged a sharp look and both men stood. "Come on," Nate ordered and the three men hurried out. When they reached Adam's house, they found him sitting on the front porch swing holding what looked like a telegram in his hand. His deputies came up the steps quietly to line up in front of him and lean back against the railing, waiting for him to speak first.  
  
Adam finished reading the telegram and dropped it onto the seat next to him. His brows rose as he took in their worried expressions.  
  
"What?" he asked and his gaze shifted to John when the deputy spoke.  
  
"Brett Bierce is in town."  
  
"Ah," Adam nodded his head. "The little weasel hasn't wasted any time." He picked the telegram up and handed it to Mike, who was standing in the middle. The deputies on either side of him leaned forward to read it at the same time.  
  
Nate made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat. "Charlie was right, figuring he'd come here next." The tall blond man was scowling fiercely then gave the man in the middle a hard poke with an elbow when he laughed.  
  
"This isn't funny, Mike."  
  
"Calm down, damn it," Mike answered evenly, rubbing his ribs with one hand while handing the telegram back to Adam with the other. "I was laughing at the picture of Dulcy throwing him out of the hotel. What a woman!"  
  
The other men stayed silent for a moment, imagining what that must have looked like and couldn't help but laugh too.  
  
"Alright now, get a hold of yourselves," Adam said his eyes sparking with humor as the dark, curly-haired Mike let out one last laugh. "We need to get the word out about this reporter being in town and that I would consider it a personal favor if no one offered any information."  
  
"Favor?" Nate asked in surprise.  
  
"Of course," Adam answered patiently. "I can't order anyone to not talk; that would be an abuse of power. You know I'm not like that, Nate." He swept his dark gaze over the other two men. "I hope all of you would know that."  
  
Nate nodded, even as he grimaced in frustration. "I guess we better get to it then," he said as he straightened up. Mike and John merely nodded and the three men hurried down the steps and up the sidewalk. Adam stayed where he was to swing for a while, wondering just what the reporter was after.  
  
"Whatever it is, I'm sure he's up to no good," he said to himself under his breath as he stood and went back to his office.  
  
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The next morning started early as most mornings did for Adam. But for some reason he felt reluctant to leave the house, preferring instead to linger in the kitchen, helping Thea feed the triplets their breakfast. They were all having a good time laughing at the babies' antics.  
  
Thomas was bouncing up and down, beating his little hands on the wooden tray of his high chair, as though the twins weren't shoving the food into his mouth fast enough. Matthew kept making futile attempts to take the spoon away from his father, and Benjamin kept looking around the room, pointing at things and shouting out their names. Seemingly, he was not very interested in eating.  
  
By the time they were finished the kitchen table was a mess and Adam had to go upstairs to change his shirt. Mathew had sneezed with a mouth full of mashed hard-boiled egg, liberally spewing it all over his father's chest. The others had shrieked with laughter, even Adam, especially when the baby had stared with awe at the mess he had created.  
  
"Ooo ick," Matthew said, quite seriously, sending everyone else into fresh gales of laughter. Then he picked up the spoon Adam had dropped on the tray and waved it around in triumph. He poked it upside down into the dish in front of him and carefully transferred a tiny bit of the egg to his mouth. Holding the spoon up in the air again, he said his first real word.  
  
"Mine!" he crowed with delight as his parents stood and Thea came with a towel to wipe as much of the mess off Adam's shirt as she could. Still laughing she gasped, "You better get out of here before you have to change everything!"  
  
Adam nodded, bent his head to kiss her lips quickly, and hurried upstairs. He was still chuckling when he entered the building and gave Walt, the huge young man at the front desk, a quick smile before going into his office.  
  
He hurried over to his desk, feeling a little guilty at his late start, and then froze when he saw a square, blank white envelope on the seat of his desk chair. His eyes narrowed and his lips tightened, knowing whom it was from. He slowly sat down, picked up the letter opener and slit the envelope. Then he pulled out the heavy white card and began to read the bold, black handwriting.  
  
You couldn't do it, so I took care of them for you. Marie's death has  
been avenged.  
  
And if you want to see the two men you sent to Earlystown alive again,  
you better get them out of that jail before sundown today.  
  
Hunter  
P.S. Tell Thea I've only just begun to pay her back.  
  
Adam went cold all over and had to force himself to stay seated and wait until he could think clearly. His eyes narrowed again as he put together a plan of action when a stray thought grew, insisting on coming forward.  
  
"Dear God," he breathed. "Is Hunter a woman?"  
  
The more he thought about it, the more his conviction firmed that the person guarding his back for years was a female. He started laughing at himself. HE had always been the one to caution other's to never underestimate women and now he could see he had been doing the same thing. Never once had he considered that Hunter was not a man.  
  
Shaking his head at himself, he quickly turned his attention to the problem of the best way to free his men. In a few minutes he decided on the best course of action and stood to hurry out the side entrance to his office. He had to send a telegram to Fort Sevier, which was only a few miles from Earlystown. Adam knew from experience that only an impressive show of strength would work and prevent any whole scale bloodshed.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
CONFRONTATION  
  
Chapter 69  
  
The sun was low in the sky and a thunderstorm was brewing when Adam reached Fort Sevier. The front gates swung open and he stayed seated as one soldier rode out to greet him.  
  
"Hello Harry," he said quietly as the man pulled up next to him and they shook hands.  
  
"Good to see you again," Harry responded as Adam's sharp gaze swept over him.  
  
"I see somebody in the front office made a mistake and promoted you to captain," he said and Harry laughed as he nodded. Then his expression sobered.  
  
"You know that what we're doing here is edging into the gray area of your authority. Not to mention highly unusual."  
  
"I know," Adam answered, meeting the other man's gaze steadily. "If any trouble comes down from this, I'll take full responsibility." He paused to let the captain think that over. "Besides, I am permitted to call on federal troops to handle any instance of incitement to riot. And I ask you, what better description could there be for a lynching party?"  
  
Harry laughed again, his blue eyes dancing with appreciation of Adam's cleverness. "We better get going then. If we get there quickly enough we might be able to avoid a confrontation." He waved an arm at the mounted men assembled just inside the fence and shouted.  
  
"Fall in!" He swung his horse around as Adam did the same and the two men led the way west toward Earlystown.  
  
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"Look," Dylan said, trying one last time to get through to the sheriff. "I am a deputy marshal out of the regional office in Virginia City. All you have to do is contact the federal marshal there, Adam Cartwright and he'll corroborate my story."  
  
The sheriff didn't even look at him and Dylan slammed his hands against the bars in frustration before turning away to throw himself down on a cot. Stu was smiling and shaking his head.  
  
"I told you it was no use," he said and swung his legs down as he sat up. "You just don't get it Dylan. That man is not interested in the truth, he's only interested in staying on the good side of the local population."  
  
Dylan sat up too, giving Stu an angry glare. "You're right! I don't understand and what the hell are you talking about?"  
  
"Lynching," Stu said quietly, "that's what I'm talking about." He paused to watch Dylan's face turn white. "All the men who died in that fire have relatives who are probably gathering right now to come and pay us a little visit. No doubt as soon as the sun goes down."  
  
"But we didn't DO anything!" Dylan protested, and then winced at how naive that sounded. Stu laughed as the other man took a deep breath and seemed to calm down somewhat, his eyes narrowed in thought.  
  
Standing, Stu quietly moved over to sit next to Dylan. Keeping one eye on the sheriff, he pulled up his pant leg and reached down to pull a knife out of a sheath that was part of the boot. He carefully slipped it into the other man's suit coat pocket. Then he reached into his other boot for another knife.  
  
"This is just about all we have to work with," he said low into Dylan's ear. "Our best bet is to stick together if we can, and try to stay back to back," he continued as the other man nodded.  
  
"I still can't believe this is happening," Dylan was saying when they heard the first boom of thunder. He stood and moved to look out the cell window. The sun's fading rays were starting to be obscured by the black, roiling clouds, jagged lightning making the bottoms glow slightly green.  
  
"Looks like we won't have much longer to wait," he informed his partner as Stu stood. The two men moved over to the bars to stand there shoulder-to- shoulder, ready to go down fighting.  
  
The wind increased and kicked up dimly seen dust devils in the street when Adam and the mounted troops reached the outskirts of town. Many of the surrounding homes looked dark and deserted as the column narrowed and they made their way slowly down the main street. A brief spattering of rain fell and a huge boom of thunder made even the ground vibrate as they pulled up in front of the sheriff's office.  
  
Leaning toward the captain Adam said, "You and your men stay here. It's best for all of you if I handle this part alone." Harry nodded his agreement and Adam saw his smiling face clearly for a second in a bright flash of lightning. He dismounted while the other man began to turn his head back and forth, watching for the crowd they had good reason to believe would be coming.  
  
Another loud boom sounded as Adam moved slowly and silently toward the sheriff's office door. He paused, standing to the side for a few seconds then abruptly turned the knob, shoved it open, and stepped into the doorway as lightning split the sky again.  
  
The sheriff looked up from his desk to see a tall, black, motionless figure outlined by the bright glare standing in the doorway. His mouth fell open and his eyes were huge as he stared.  
  
Adam didn't move for a moment, he just stood there staring at the older man behind the desk. He waited for another thunderous blast to sound before stepping in. Pausing in front of the desk, he dropped a sheaf of papers and picked up the ring of keys in one quick motion. The sheriff didn't move, frozen in terror at the dark, menacing glare Adam pinned him with.  
  
Stu and Dylan had both been badly startled when the door opened, but were now grinning as Adam moved silently toward them. The warning look they received wiped the grins off their faces and they quickly stepped out of the cell and hurried through the office door when Adam nodded his head in that direction.  
  
The sheriff barely noticed them go, he had pushed his chair backward until it hit the wall. He continued to push against the back as he watched the man in black come toward him again.  
  
Adam dropped the keys on the desk and raised his gaze to meet the other man's bulging eyes. The sheriff flinched at the fury he saw there.  
  
"This matter has now become a federal case," he said, his voice deepened by his rage. He picked up the sheaf of papers he had dropped on the desk and tossed them at the cowering man. They separated and fluttered to the floor around him.  
  
"Take my advice and get the hell out. When that lynch party gets here and finds that cell empty they'll turn on the nearest target - and that will be you," he ground out through clenched teeth, and then turned away to stalk through the door, slamming it shut behind him.  
  
Adam quickly saw that both Stu and Dylan were mounted and in the middle of the troops. He went to his horse and had just swung up into the saddle when they saw flickering torchlight coming down the nearest side street.  
  
Harry motioned a silent order to his men and they all shifted to face in that direction, filling the width of the street, three-man deep. The voices they heard shouting encouragement to each other echoed off the buildings, but abruptly stopped when the crowd turned the corner to see the silent mass of shadow men and horses confronting them.  
  
Mouths fell open, torches wavered, and ropes already fashioned into nooses dropped to the ground. Both Harry and Adam nudged their horses forward and the mounted troops followed closely. The crowd broke and ran.  
  
When the last figure had disappeared into the darkness, Harry turned to Adam and smiled, his white teeth flashing in the gloom.  
  
"You were timing the lightning, weren't you?"  
  
Adam laughed softly. "Of course. You know I'll use anything to my advantage Harry."  
  
The captain shook his head, still smiling as he turned toward his men and gave the order to head back to the fort. Just as they moved past the last building in town the skies opened up and rain began to pour down, drenching them all, but not dampening their high spirits in the least.  
  
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When the tired, rain-soaked men finally reached the fort the storm swept past, still moving steadily east. An hour later Adam was sitting in front of the fireplace in Harry's quarters with all of their wet garments strung on a line above.  
  
Finally dry in borrowed clothing, Adam was watching the other two men carefully as they came out of the bedroom, knowing the experience of narrowly escaping being hanged would affect them deeply. But neither man seemed any different to him, they still smiled and laughed at how they looked in the uniforms they had been given.  
  
"You look ridiculous," Stu was saying as Dylan had to tighten his belt again to hold up the huge trousers. He struck a dramatic pose.  
  
"I think I look rather dashing, don't you?" he said to his boss who smiled.  
  
"Yes dear, and that blue exactly matches your eyes," Adam said sarcastically. Dylan grinned, not in the least bit put out. He was used to being harassed about his fondness for dapper dress.  
  
Stu was still grinning then laughed again when the trousers billowed out alarmingly as the red haired man dropped sit on the floor right in front of the fire. "Be careful Dylan, any closer and those damn things will go up in flames."  
  
"That would warm you up fast enough," Adam laughed when he saw Dylan shiver slightly.  
  
"That was certainly one long, cold ride," Dylan said as his expression became serious. "And I couldn't care less. All I cared about was getting out of that damn town."  
  
Nodding in agreement, Stu lowered himself to sit cross-legged on the floor next to the deputy and turned his light brown eyes to Adam. "I swear I've never been happier to see anybody before in my life," he said quietly. "Thank you."  
  
"You're welcome," Adam responded then leaned forward in his chair. "Now tell me what happened."  
  
"You mean you don't know?" Dylan asked in surprise and his brows rose when his boss just shook his head.  
  
"No, not really."  
  
"Then how did you know to come after us?" Stu's forehead furrowed deeply as he frowned.  
  
"Let's just say an unknown friend told me to get you two out of there before sunset if I wanted to ever see you alive again."  
  
"An unknown friend?" the red-haired deputy echoed softly, and then realized from the older man's expression that Adam wasn't going to elaborate on that point for the moment. So he began to tell the story of his efforts to find the men responsible for Marie's murder. When he finished telling Adam about the celebration in the church, he stopped to let Stu take over, but Adam spoke instead.  
  
"Did you notice anything odd about the punch that was being passed around?" he asked and watched Dylan think the question over.  
  
"Considering that concoction was heavily spiked with every kind of liquor available, I'd have to say no." Then he thought some more, "But I do remember a slightly sickish, kind of bitter aftertaste," he offered and Adam nodded.  
  
"Seems to me that lethal mix was spiked with more than just booze," Adam said almost to himself. Nodding, Dylan turned to Stu who continued the story. The young man flushed with embarrassment when he told how the killer had managed to sneak up behind him and knock him out cold. Adam just smiled, encouraging him to continue.  
  
"Neither of us woke up until we were in that cell, and you know the rest," Stu finished quietly, his light brown eyes fixed on Adam's face that quickly took on that "far away" look. He glanced at Dylan who grinned, knowing the blank face and intense eyes he was seeing had unnerved him a bit.  
  
"Don't worry, he does that frequently. He'll come out of it in a minute," he said with a slight laugh and Stu relaxed, reassured.  
  
In a few moments Adam took a deep breath and raised his eyes to Dylan's. "Tell me everything you can remember about the killer."  
  
"Well, I can't put my finger on it, but I could swear there was something wrong about him. That memory is still rather vague. You know what I mean...fuzzy around the edges."  
  
Adam grinned, "Oh yes, I know exactly what you're talking about," he said quietly and Dylan grinned back, remembering the story of the other man's own troubles with faulty memory.  
  
"Yeah I guess you would," he chuckled then fell silent as his boss gave him a look he couldn't read.  
  
Seeming to come to a decision, Adam's gaze sharpened. "Think carefully," he cautioned his deputy, "and consider the possibility of the killer being a woman." Dylan's eyes widened instantly.  
  
"That's it!" he blurted out, the memory now becoming clearer. "How did you know?"  
  
Adam sat back in his chair and sighed. "The note I received warning me about you two came from the killer. And since the note was signed with the name 'Hunter' the two obviously have to be the same person." He paused to collect his thoughts.  
  
"The killer added a post script at the end, ordering me to tell Thea that Hunter had just begun to pay her back. I'm assuming that the repayment is for some kind of medical treatment and I know she has had very few male patients since we moved to San Francisco who weren't family members or close friends."  
  
The two men sitting on the floor were nodding in agreement, following his reasoning easily and concurring with his conclusions.  
  
"Seems unbelievable, but I DO believe it," Dylan said softly and they all fell silent, each man deep in his own thoughts until Adam spoke.  
  
"You two better get some sleep, we'll be heading back to Virginia City early in the morning," he said while nodding toward the bedroom doorway. Dylan and Stu glanced at each other.  
  
"Aren't you going to bed?" his deputy asked.  
  
Adam shook his head, "I'll be up for a while."  
  
The other men slowly moved into the bedroom, but surprised Adam by coming back with blankets and pillows in their arms. Dylan smiled almost shyly.  
  
"We're both still pretty cold from that drenching, so we thought it'd be better to bed down next to the fire," he said quickly and they stretched out on the rug, their feet toward the fireplace.  
  
"Good night Adam," Stu said quietly and Dylan chimed in with, "'Night boss."  
  
"Go to sleep," Adam answered, smiling at the idea of the two grown men feeling safer with him in the same room. He stood slowly and moved cautiously over to the sofa where he stretched out on his back, his legs crossed at the ankle and his arms folded across his chest.  
  
He was still there and still wide-awake when the sun made a brilliant entrance through the windows as it rose. Swinging his legs down, Adam sat up to yawn and scrub his hands across his face, the bristles of his day-old beard rasped harshly. "I really AM getting too old for this," he said softly to himself before he stood to cautiously shake Dylan awake first. He wanted to be on the road for home as soon as possible.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
FAMILY AND FRIENDS  
  
Chapter 70  
  
The three men received an enthusiastically warm welcome when they came in the front door of the cream-colored house and walked into a huge surprise party. As soon as she received a telegram from Adam saying all was well, Thea had swung into action, organizing everything and gathering up people. Everyone had helped, from Ben down to the twins and the celebration was an unqualified, and noisy, success.  
  
Ben, Hoss, Dora, Joe, and Stu had all spent the night, so the table at breakfast the next morning was full. But as soon as the meal was over everyone except Adam and Stu scattered, each person intent on whatever tasks lay ahead of them that morning.  
  
Adam quickly finished his coffee and stood to begin clearing the table - he didn't often get the opportunity to take over this chore for his wife, and liked to do so whenever he could to surprise her.  
  
"Need any help?" Stu asked and Adam nodded.  
  
"Sure you can dry," he tossed a dishtowel to the other man, and then chuckled.  
  
"What's funny?" Stu asked as he swished a plate in the rinse water pan and began drying it.  
  
"The last time someone helped me like this it was Dylan and that's the night I asked him to join my office." Adam laughed and went on to explain when he saw Stu's puzzled expression. "That was also the night Dora got caught in his room," he laughed harder at the memory.  
  
"Dora was in Dylan's room and he's still alive?" Stu asked in disbelief.  
  
Nodding, Adam had to take a deep breath before he could explain. "There was a mix up with the rooms and Dora thought she had slipped into Hoss's."  
  
"Oh," Stu answered and laughed himself as he continued to dry the dishes.  
  
"One of the funniest things I've ever seen was Dylan trying to wrap a blanket around himself and disappear into the woodwork at the same time. I could tell by his expression he thought his life was about to end when Hoss walked in."  
  
"Did Hoss explode?"  
  
"No, he figured out what happened and would have been fine if Thea hadn't let a laugh escape. That set him off and I thought for sure he was going to have a stroke before he got a grip on himself."  
  
"I wish I had been here to see it. There's been very little in my life to laugh at," Stu said quietly and smiled.  
  
Adam finished washing the last dish and dumped all the flatware into the dishpan. "So what are you going to do now?" he asked the younger man. Stu didn't answer for a while and Adam waited patiently as he worked.  
  
"I've been thinking about that a lot lately, and the only thing I know for sure is that it's time to hang up my gun belt." Stu paused to look out the window over the sink. "My mother never said so, but I knew she hated the kind of work I was doing and I just can't go on living that way anymore."  
  
"I'm sure you're right," Adam said low as he finished washing the flatware. "Any ideas about what you want to do instead?" he asked as he dried his hands and nodded toward the table.  
  
Stu dried the last utensil and when they were both seated at the table again, he sighed deeply while staring down at his hands. "Well, I heard about this crazy federal marshal who's looking for men to patrol his district. I hear he's a hard man to work for, but I've also heard he's fair and all he asks is for his people to do their jobs." He raised his light brown eyes to meet the other man's sparkling hazel gaze.  
  
"I see," Adam said and grinned as he stood. Stu watched him carefully, not sure if he was being accepted or rejected.  
  
"Let's go over to my office and start the paperwork," Adam continued and the younger man sighed inaudibly in relief. He stood and hurried to catch up.  
  
"What I would like is for you to be second in command of this new group I'm forming. My cousin Will has agreed to move here and take the first position. He has the experience and personality I think is needed to be in charge, so don't think for one minute that nepotism is involved here. If he can't do the job, he will be replaced, just like anyone else." Stu was nodding as Adam paused to open the front door.  
  
"Just remember that Stu," he said and his expression became serious. "I will sacrifice any relationship to be sure the people of this district are being served and protected. I will not compromise the integrity of my office for anyone."  
  
"Yes sir," the younger man said quietly.  
  
Smiling Adam said, "Good, just so we understand each other," and waved his young friend through, followed him out, and paused only long enough to be sure the door was locked.  
  
Thea came bouncing down the back stairs to the kitchen a short time later and stopped in surprise when she saw that the dishes had been done and were now stacked on the counter. She shook her head.  
  
"What on earth did I ever do to deserve that man," she said under her breath then started slightly when someone spoke right behind her.  
  
"I don't know, but I do know how happy I am for you," Dora said as she put her arms around the shorter woman and hugged her tightly from behind. Hearing an odd note to her cousin's tone, Thea turned around to take her by the hand and lead her to the table.  
  
Dora sank into one of the chairs with a sigh and Thea examined her face closely, now seeing how pale and puffy she looked. Her eyes narrowed in concern.  
  
"What's wrong?" she reached out to take Dora's hands in hers as her cousin's expression crumpled.  
  
"Hoss doesn't love me anymore," she choked out and tears began to flow freely down her cheeks.  
  
"Good God!" Thea burst out with. "I can't believe that!"  
  
"It's true...he won't come near me. Every time I try to get close he runs away. He's even started sleeping in another room."  
  
Thea gasped and blinked rapidly, trying to understand the implications of what her cousin was saying. "Dear Lord," she breathed quietly, "this just doesn't sound like Hoss at all."  
  
"I swear to you it's true. Last night was the first night we've spent in the same room for a month or so. And when I went to bed he acted like he was asleep, but I know he wasn't." Dora took her hands from Thea's and covered her face as she sobbed.  
  
Thinking furiously, a glimmer of an idea came to Thea that would explain Hoss's odd behavior. She smiled.  
  
"Tell me, has he SAID anything unkind to you?"  
  
"No. All he ever says is for me to take it easy and be careful. He won't let me do anything anymore." Dora's voice was muffled.  
  
"Ah," Thea said and smiled. "You said this has been going on for about a month or so, right?"  
  
The other woman dropped her hands and nodded, giving her cousin a beseeching look. "I think it would be relief just to know for sure, but I can't bear to ask him. Would you talk to him?"  
  
"I don't think that would be a good idea, Dora. There's only one person who can get away with talking to him about something like this and that's Adam. But I do have to say I'm pretty sure you're wrong."  
  
"I am?" Dora asked hopefully.  
  
"Yes. Hoss is avoiding you because he doesn't want to hurt you."  
  
"Hurt me? I don't understand."  
  
"Dear, you should know by now that Hoss would never do anything to hurt you in any way. And no doubt he has gotten an idea into his head that if he...um...shows you physical affection he'll be putting you and the baby in danger."  
  
Dora considered Thea's words for a few moments, and then the corners of her mouth lifted slightly. "I'm married to a sweet and thoughtful idiot," she said softly, and they both burst out laughing.  
  
"Oh you have to be right," Dora gasped in relief while Thea nodded her head.  
  
"Tell me, has he been extremely irritable lately?"  
  
Dora laughed harder, "Yes you wouldn't believe how touchy he's become. Even Pa has been approaching him with caution."  
  
"Oh God," Thea choked out and started to rock in her chair as she almost howled. Dora put her head down on the table and let all the misery and tension she had been feeling out, crying while she laughed.  
  
When the two women calmed down, Thea stood to get a couple of napkins from a drawer and handed one to her cousin. They both dried their tears of laughter while small bursts of amusement still escaped whenever they met each other's eyes.  
  
"Alright," Thea finally managed to say. "I have to talk to Adam about this and see if he'll agree to help. In the mean time, just go home and be patient. We're supposed to come out to the ranch next week to do the books and if Adam agrees, he can talk to him then."  
  
Dora nodded, stood, and started toward the stairs, the damp napkin still clutched tightly in her hand. But when she reached the bottom she turned around and came rushing back to throw her arms around her cousin. She hugged Thea as hard as she could, whispered a quick "Thank you," and hurried away.  
  
Shaking her head, Thea listened to her cousin go up the stairs, and then turned to quickly put the dishes away. When she was finished she paused to softly say, "A sweet and thoughtful idiot," to herself and leaned weakly against the counter as she shook with silent laughter.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Thea didn't get a chance to be alone with her husband until they went to bed that night. For a change, he wasn't staying up late and Thea waited until she was lying on her side with her head on his shoulder and his arm around her. She tried to think of a casual way to bring up the subject, but quickly realized she'd have to be straightforward.  
  
She was about to speak when Adam gave her a little shake and asked, "So what's lying so heavy on your mind?"  
  
Thea sighed. She should have known he'd notice. "Dora confided something to me today and I think she needs your help."  
  
"Ah, I noticed she hasn't been herself lately and neither has Hoss. So what's the problem?"  
  
"Well, let's just say that Hoss has been...keeping his distance ever since he found out she's expecting."  
  
"What? I don't understand what you mean."  
  
"Dear Lord," Thea sighed surprised at herself for feeling embarrassed. "He hasn't been physically affectionate," she explained quickly and felt him start to shake with silent laughter.  
  
"Adam I know it seems funny, but Dora was convinced he didn't love her anymore. And when I figured out that he just didn't want to hurt her or the baby she said she was married to a sweet and thoughtful idiot." Adam laughed even harder at that and Thea couldn't help but laugh with him.  
  
"Oh God," he finally gasped. "I don't think I've ever heard a better description of my brother before." He was shaking his head, "A sweet and thoughtful idiot," he said and laughed one more time.  
  
"So will you talk to him? When we go out there next week to do the books?" she asked anxiously, not at all sure if he would.  
  
"Alright, I'll talk to him. But those two really need to learn how to work things out for themselves."  
  
Thea nodded. "But sometimes a younger couple needs advice from an older couple," she offered and he chuckled.  
  
"So we're old, are we?" he teased as he rolled over and pinned her to the mattress.  
  
"Now that's not what I said," she laughed as his lips brushed her ear.  
  
"Saying we're older is the same thing," he insisted. She was about to argue the point, but he took her mouth in a deeply demanding kiss, and all thoughts on that subject just flew out of her head.  
  
Nothing more in the way of conversation could be heard from that room and the only sound echoing in the upper hallway was the clock chiming out the hour. Everyone else in the house was sound asleep and the hired guards outside continued to make their rounds silently while a man-shaped silhouette quickly crouched down to watch from a nearby hill.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
FUTILITY  
  
Chapter 71  
  
Brett had been in Virginia City for three days and wasn't having any other kind of luck except bad. Everywhere he went he was being treated politely, but distantly. Even the woman he had spoken to at the Post Office had looked at him blankly when he brought up the subject of Adam Cartwright.  
  
He knew she was a very close friend of the family, but refused to answer any questions. Every tact he tried was useless; she just continued to ignore his questions and stared at him with those disturbingly beautiful blue-green eyes. By the time he left he could swear he actually felt a nip of frostbite, in spite of the August heat.  
  
Heaving a sigh of relief when he gained the board sidewalk, he paused to try and think of another place to try. So far he had been turned away empty-handed from the saloons, every store, the livery, the apothecary, and the hotel. Doctor Matt Harvey practically threw him out of his office, and the sheriff had absolutely nothing to say.  
  
He couldn't even get any information out of the dance hall girls. According to them, Adam Cartwright had never been unfaithful to his wife in any way. And to top it off, his wife didn't treat them any differently as her patients than she treated the local housewives. In fact, she acted as their champion whenever they needed someone on their side and asked her husband for help if any one of them was being treated badly. Seemingly, abuse of any female was another thing that sparked the marshal's formidable temper.  
  
After standing there for some time and watching the local population go about their business, he finally realized he only had Adam's family left. And he wasn't very happy at the thought of approaching them. But he felt he had no choice and went back to the livery to rent a horse and buggy.  
  
An hour later he was on his way, hoping that the directions the man at the livery gave him were accurate. Brett could tell he was extremely reluctant to help, but knew he couldn't claim ignorance as an excuse. Everyone knew where the Ponderosa was.  
  
He used the time as he drove out there to try and figure out an angle, a subtle approach that might gain him a foot in the door. By the time he was about to pull up in front of the house he had his strategy planned, but his palms were sweaty with fear.  
  
A full figured woman with wavy chestnut hair was sitting on the front porch with large leather-bound book in her lap. She was bent over and studying it closely, but closed it and slowly stood when he brought the buggy to a stop.  
  
Brett climbed down and turned to face her as she put the book down, stepped off the porch and came toward him. Her gray eyes were smiling in welcome and his mouth went dry when he took in her beautiful, softly curved features, and graceful figure.  
  
"Hello, are you here to see someone?" she asked and he instantly fell in love with her musical voice, warmed with a faint accent he couldn't place.  
  
"Yes, I was hoping to speak with Benjamin Cartwright."  
  
"I see," she said quietly. "Is he expecting you?"  
  
"No ma'am, I came to town unexpectedly and drove out here on the off chance that he might be home."  
  
Dora opened her mouth to speak again, but turned when they heard the front door open. Ben, Hoss, and Joe came out.  
  
Hoss immediately came to stand next to his wife, and frowned at Brett when he saw the gleam of appreciation for Dora's beauty in the smaller man's eyes. Brett took a small step back as Ben and Joe stepped up beside Hoss.  
  
"Can we help you?" Ben asked, his expression anything but friendly.  
  
"That depends, are you Benjamin Cartwright?"  
  
Ben's eyes narrowed. "Yes I am."  
  
The reporter took a deep breath and plunged ahead with his last ditch effort. "I'm Brett Bierce, a reporter for the San Francisco Daily and I'm doing a piece on your son Adam."  
  
As soon as he said his name, all three men exchanged quick glances and their frowns deepened. Brett rushed on, not giving them a chance to speak.  
  
"I know your son must have spread the word around town that I was here considering that no one will say one word about him." The reporter paused for a second to swallow the hard lump of fear that had formed in his throat at their expressions. "Now I have to tell you, I WILL write this piece and it WILL be published. So it's up to you whether or not that article contains only the words and opinions of people who are not your son's friends." He tried to brace his shaking knees. "I would like the story to be balanced, with both sides represented equally, but I can't do that if none of you will speak to me," he finished and waited for a reaction.  
  
Ben took a step forward and almost towered over the smaller man. His snapping, black eyes looked down at Brett intently. "What you are saying smells of coercion," he said in a tightly controlled voice.  
  
"No, not at all. But this is a free country and I think it would be a shame for our readers to only be told about Adam's less than admirable qualities."  
  
Having given it his best shot, Brett fell silent and forced himself to meet the older man's gaze. The seconds ticked by as Ben continued to stare until he blinked once. And then he smiled, and then he started laughing. Hoss and Joe joined in while Dora continued to glare at the little man.  
  
Ben put a hand on Hoss's shoulder and bent over, he was laughing so hard. "Less than admirable..." he gasped and shook his head. "Son," he went on, "you better learn HOW to bluff before you try anything like this again."  
  
The three Cartwright men continued to laugh and were startled when Dora's temper exploded. "Why do you laugh? This man wants to hurt Adam, yes? To stain his reputation?" her accent had deepened with her anger.  
  
"Now Dora, don't go gettin' yourself all worked up over this..." Hoss was saying when she stepped up to Brett and leaned down. "You are a pig!" she hissed in his face as she stepped around him to grab him by the collar of his jacket.  
  
"What are you doing?" Brett yelped and tried to twist away, but was no match for the enraged woman.  
  
"I am taking you where all pigs belong!" she shouted and continued to drag him around to the back of the barn. She stopped for a moment, opened a gate, dragged Brett through, and tossed him into the middle of a huge mud puddle.  
  
The reporter landed face first and he quickly turned over and tried to get up. But his feet insisted on slipping out from under him and he was completely covered in mud before he managed to crawl over to the fence and pull himself up.  
  
Dora was standing in the gate opening, her hands fisted on her hips, and her spine stiff with fury. All Brett could do was stare at this towering Amazon and wish for a brief second he had never, ever heard the name "Cartwright."  
  
Ben and Joe were leaning against each other weakly, almost crying with laughter while Hoss had his hands on Dora's shoulders, trying to get her to calm down. She sighed deeply and turned to say something to him, but suddenly doubled over at a sharp stab of pain. Her face went stark white and Hoss swung her up into his arms.  
  
"Go get Thea!" he barked at his younger brother and Joe ran into the barn. Ben hurried ahead to open the front door and in a few moments Joe led his horse out, swung up into the saddle, and took off like a shot. Brett was completely forgotten.  
  
The reporter slowly climbed through the fence and stood there looking down at his mud-covered clothes. He sighed and tried to sort out his warring emotions. On the one hand he felt terrible, realizing the woman was expecting and he was terrified at the thought of anything happening to either her or the child. On the other hand, he was furious at the way everyone connected to Adam in any way had stonewalled him, refusing to give him even the smallest comment.  
  
He squelched across the barnyard and when he reached the buggy he didn't know what to do. Then he shrugged his shoulders. There was no help for it; he would just have to drive back to town covered in mud.  
  
When he was halfway there he wisely pulled over when he saw Joe on his horse and another buggy approaching at break-neck speed. Adam was at the reins and a petite black-haired woman was sitting next to him. She was leaning forward, as though that would help make the buggy go faster, and when they passed they all turned their heads to stare at him. But the only thing he would later remember seeing was Adam's darkly furious eyes. Brett suppressed a shiver and turned to watch as they flew past. He continued to stare until they passed beyond his sight and then he turned around and flicked the reins to get the buggy moving. On the slow drive to town he seriously considered that he might have chosen the wrong profession.  
  
That evening Brett was in his room at the hotel, packing to catch the train back to San Francisco the next day. He was just about finished when someone knocked on his door. Brett hurried to open it and saw a tall, thin man with dark blond hair and the fleshy, loose face of a serious drinker. The man must have lost a great deal of weight, his clothes hung on him.  
  
"You that reporter that's been asking about Adam Cartwright around town?" the man said in a raspy voice.  
  
"Yes I am," Brett answered wearily, wondering if he was going to be attacked by a hired thug this time.  
  
The man's bloodshot blue eyes glanced furtively up and down the corridor. "Well I can tell you anything you want to know."  
  
The reporter stared at him for a few seconds, and then shrugged as he moved to the side to let the taller man in. He watched the man move slowly into the room and realized he was drunk, but decided to listen to what he had to offer.  
  
When they were both seated on opposite sides of a table near the window Brett leaned forward to look into the man's watery eyes. "What's your name?" he asked and noticed his guest stiffen. "Don't worry, I won't use it if you don't want me to," he said quickly.  
  
The other man cleared his throat before answering. "My name is Aaron Mueller and Adam Cartwright killed my brother..."  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Thea was in her kitchen early in the afternoon of the next day when she heard someone knocking on the front door. She hurried down the front hallway, followed by the ever-present Minnie, and opened the door. Her eyes widened when she saw who was standing there. Then her face went red with rage as she stared at Brett through the screen door.  
  
"What the hell do you want?" she said through clenched teeth and the reporter swallowed nervously.  
  
He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out so he had to clear his throat. "I'm leaving town this afternoon and wanted to ask if Dora is all right."  
  
Thea just glared at him for a bit. "Yes she is, no thanks to you," she finally spat at him and he took a step back.  
  
"Please believe me, I never meant her or anyone else any harm. I was just doing my job."  
  
Thea's back stiffened and she shoved the screen door open, barely missing hitting him in the head. "Doing your job!" she hissed as she stepped out to face him. Their eyes were almost on the same level, but she seemed to loom over him in fury.  
  
"Do you have any idea what you'll be doing to my husband if you publish his life's story? Do you have any clue about the damage you will do?"  
  
"Damage?" Brett repeated. "Oh, do you mean what Aaron Mueller told me about Adam killing his brother? No, I know that isn't true, but the real story is sensational enough. I don't doubt it will be picked up nation- wide and your husband will be famous from coast to coast."  
  
"Exactly, you idiot," she sighed with exasperation. "If you do this, if you expose him to public acclaim he will have to resign. You will single handedly render him completely ineffectual and he will have to step down." She shook her head. "Is that what you want?"  
  
"Of course not," Brett hastily offered. "But the public has the right to know about him. After all, he did choose to become a public figure."  
  
Thea made an odd choking noise; her hands clenched so tightly into fists her knuckles were white. She fought the urge to punch the pompous ass in the nose and managed to hold on to her control by remembering her promise to Adam.  
  
"My husband is right as usual. You ARE an imbecile," she said in a strangely calm voice and turned away from him to open the screen door.  
  
Brett assumed she was going back into the house and the conversation was over, so opened his mouth to apologize again for upsetting Dora. He never got the chance.  
  
Thea didn't go inside. Instead she said the name "Minnie" and stepped back. The reporter stared at the huge, white dog that stalked stiffly out onto the porch and he started to slowly backup with instinctual fear. Turning her head to look at Brett, Thea smiled a coldly sharp smile and said only one more word..."Trespasser."  
  
Brett turned and ran for the gate as fast as he could, but didn't manage to escape without losing the seat of his pants.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
A BAD PENNY  
  
Chapter 72  
  
The post office was unusually busy on a cool and sunny Friday morning in the beginning of September, so Ben only paused long enough at the window to give Barbara a wide, sympathetic smile. She just laughed and gave him a jaunty wave as he skirted the crowd and opened the door to leave.  
  
Two young ladies who had been about to enter looked up at him with wide eyes, and then blushed slightly when he stepped back to hold the door open for them. The girls thanked him with shy smiles and he could faintly hear them giggling through the closed door as he started to walk away.  
  
He had only taken a few steps when he realized a crowd had formed outside the saloon a block ahead. His brows rose when he thought he recognized two voices through the din of laughter, and those two voices were female.  
  
Ben couldn't understand what the one voice was shouting as he pushed his way through the crowd because Dora had lapsed into Italian. But there was no doubt she was furious, so he pushed harder and quickly shouldered his way through.  
  
When he broke free he stopped dead for a moment, not understanding what he was seeing. Dora was hanging onto the back of a hugely fat man and beating him on the head with her reticule. And it wasn't until the man turned slightly to the side that he saw Thea crushed in his arms, frantically trying to avoid his efforts to kiss her. Ben instantly saw red.  
  
Without making a sound, he strode forward to take Dora by the waist and pulled her off the man's back. She resisted for a second until she realized who it was. Then she let go and stepped to the side. As soon as she was out of the way, Ben used a move he had learned from Adam and quickly swung both arms from the shoulder to slap the palms of his hands on the man's ears. He screeched like a scalded cat, let go of Thea, and staggered back, his hands cupping his aching ears.  
  
Thea had fallen to the sidewalk and Ben bent down to help her up, but as soon as she was standing, she darted out of his arms to punch her attacker in the nose. Blood spurted and he stood there frozen in shock when Dora kicked him in as hard as she could in his substantial behind. He toppled forward and landed on the board sidewalk face down; the vibration when he hit could be felt in the ground at least a block away.  
  
The men that made up the surrounding crowd were practically falling down, howling with laughter as Ben grabbed Thea around the waist to pull her away from the prone man. Then they quickly fell silent as one side parted and Adam strode through.  
  
He looked down at the man who was trying to get to his feet then at his wife being held firmly back in his father's arms, and then around the crowd of men. A few turned red, but all dropped their eyes as they slowly began to disperse.  
  
Dora was now standing next to Ben and her cousin, her dark gray eyes still flashing with rage as the man finally got to his feet.  
  
"What the hell is going on here?" Adam asked his father. Ben was about to answer when the man noticed Adam's badge and grabbed his arm with one bloody hand.  
  
"Dad man attagged me!" he said, the words sounding odd because of his broken nose. "All dree of dem did!" he continued as Adam looked down with distaste and yanked his arm from the man's grasp.  
  
"He was attacking Thea, I had no choice," Ben's furiously dark eyes were looking at the man with disgust.  
  
Adam's eyes narrowed and his face tightened as he turned back to the man who was wiping blood off his chin.  
  
"Dad's by wibe! He had do ride do inderfere!" the man insisted and Adam's brows rose.  
  
"THIS is Hugh?" he said to his wife, incredulous, and she nodded, still speechless with anger and ready to attack him again.  
  
Adam started laughing and nodded when Ben asked, "HE'S her first husband?"  
  
"Whad do you bean, her firsd?" Hugh choked out, and then yelped when Adam grabbed him by the collar because he noticed another crowd starting to form.  
  
"People," he said in a low, firm tone. "We are not going to discuss this in the street." He turned, dragging Hugh with him. "My office. Now!"  
  
Hugh opened his mouth to protest, but thought better of the idea when Adam gave him a hard shake and a furious glance. He didn't dare make another sound the whole way to the regional office.  
  
Adam opened the front door, shoved Hugh inside, and then held the door open for his father, wife, and sister-in-law.  
  
"You three stay here," he said in a no-nonsense tone before turning to Hugh. "YOU, in here," he barked striding toward his office. He opened the door and went through as the fat man scuttled after him.  
  
"Close the door," Adam ordered as he moved behind his desk and sat down. He pinned his unwelcome guest with a hard stare and nodded toward one of the blue-leather visitor's chairs. Hugh immediately pushed the door shut and hurried forward to obey the unspoken command, his expression clearly showing his fear.  
  
The silence stretched on while Adam stared at the man sitting in front of him, noting his thinning light brown hair, coarse features, and watery pale gray eyes. He had to firmly tamp down his fury at the thought of this man touching his wife and suppressed a shudder of disgust when Hugh nervously licked his rubbery lips.  
  
Hugh wisely didn't speak, knowing this man was Thea's husband and also knowing his attempts to feign ignorance of that fact hadn't been believed. He jumped when Adam finally spoke in a hard voice.  
  
"Why are you here?"  
  
"Whad?" Hugh automatically responded.  
  
"It's a fairly simple question, one even YOU should be able to answer. Why are you here?"  
  
"I...uh...I cabe here..." he started to say when Adam interrupted him with a sigh of impatience and tossed him a handkerchief.  
  
"Clear your nose idiot, I can't understand anything you're saying."  
  
Hugh awkwardly caught it, hurried to comply, and then squeaked at the unexpected bolt of pain.  
  
"She broke my nose," he said, seemingly amazed by that fact.  
  
"Yes she did, and you're lucky that's all she did."  
  
"A wife shouldn't break her husband's nose," he was staring down at the bloody handkerchief in disbelief.  
  
"I agree with you on principle, but that does not apply here. She is NOT your wife."  
  
"Yes she is!" the fat man insisted then sank back in his chair when he finally met Adam's coldly furious stare.  
  
"Let's stop this farce right here. Theadora is not your wife, she is my wife, and you know it." Hugh opened his mouth to argue, but Adam cut him off.  
  
"Save your breath and stop trying to claim her, you don't have a legal leg to stand on. You were declared legally dead, and that sham marriage was annulled."  
  
"But I'm not dead!" Hugh blurted out, badly unnerved.  
  
"Congratulations," Adam said sarcastically, "but that doesn't matter. In the eyes of the church and state that marriage never existed." He stood to lean across the desk, his fisted hands pressing into the leather top. "And we BOTH know the one thing that had to occur to make it legal and binding never happened."  
  
Hugh stared up at him in dismay as he saw all of his plans going up in smoke. His mouth opened and closed futilely as he tried to think of something to say.  
  
"Look, I know the only reason you're here is to get your hands on Thea's money, but you might as well not try. No judge is ever going to rule in your favor, you have no legal argument." Adam straightened up and smiled his sharpest smile. "And don't go thinking you can site precedent because you were married in England...I had it annulled there too."  
  
Adam opened a drawer to take out a folded packet of papers then came around the front of the desk. He dropped the packet into the other man's lap and leaned back to half sit on the edge of the desk.  
  
"That's a copy of all the paperwork, including a federal restraint order. You are hereby served and ordered to stay at least fifty yards from Thea at all times. Non-compliance with this order is a federal offense and WILL result in a prison sentence." He laughed softly as the other man slumped in defeat.  
  
"Now I could lock you up right now for assaulting my wife on the street, but I think it will be best for all concerned if you just leave town." He slapped his hands on his thighs as he stood and bit back another laugh when Hugh started at the sharp sound.  
  
"I don't think we have anything further to discuss," he said as he strode across the office to the outside entrance. He pulled the door open and stood there, waiting for the other man to take the hint.  
  
Hugh slowly stood and tried to catch the papers as they slid to the floor, but missed. Heaving a deep sigh, he bent to pick them up, and then reluctantly moved toward the door. He stepped through the opening and stopped on the first step, blinking in the bright sunshine as he tried to figure out what the hell happened. Then he flinched when Adam spoke once more.  
  
"I knew you would show up someday...bad pennies like you always do," he said low and with disgust. Then he firmly shut the door as his badly defeated opponent limped away with his tail between his legs.  
  
Shaking his head, Adam watched him for a few moments then turned around to go to the other door. Hearing footsteps quickly moving away, he shook his head again and opened the door to see his father, wife, and sister-in-law standing only a few feet away - and with guilty expressions.  
  
Tipping his head to the side, he gave them an admonishing look and motioned for them to come in. The three sat down on the sofa and Adam noticed Thea was trying to conceal her handkerchief-wrapped right hand in her skirt. Sighing, he held his left hand out to her with an expectant look. Making a frustrated sound in the back of her throat, she obeyed as she ducked her head.  
  
He carefully unwrapped her hand and winced when he saw the skin over two of her knuckles was split and the hand was already badly swollen.  
  
"I'm sorry," he heard her say in a small voice. "I know I promised to not hit people anymore, but this time it was more like I was defending myself." She was watching him through her upper lashes and her mouth set stubbornly when he started to shake his head. "Well it was!" she persisted and the other three couldn't help but laugh at her defensive tone.  
  
"Alright, alright...I guess it was too much to ask of you to not attack that man after everything he's done."  
  
Thea sighed in relief, glad she wasn't going to be on the receiving end of one of her husband's lectures and Dora slipped an arm around her cousin to pull her over into a hug.  
  
"Just the thought of Doc forcing you to marry that man makes me long to desecrate his grave," Dora said in a tight voice. Thea laughed at the memory of her cousin jumping on Hugh's back and beating in him the head even while she started to shake slightly in reaction.  
  
"Thank you for defending me," she whispered and Dora tightened her hold as Ben chuckled and stood.  
  
"Well, the morning will be gone soon, so I better get Dora home before Hoss starts to worry," he said and the two men helped the ladies to their feet.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure he's already worrying," Dora said with a resigned air and Ben smiled.  
  
"No doubt he is," he agreed. "Are you still coming out this afternoon?" he asked his son and Adam nodded.  
  
"Expect us around two o'clock," he answered his father, and then opened the outside entrance door for them.  
  
"See you then!" Ben said over his shoulder as he escorted Dora out and down the steps.  
  
Adam closed the door and turned to see his wife watching him carefully. "No, I didn't forget and yes I'll have that talk with Hoss this afternoon," he said and chuckled when she hurried over to throw her arms around him.  
  
"Thank you," she said, her voice muffled against his chest.  
  
"Let's just hope he'll listen to me better than you do," he teased and put a hand under her chin to tip her now red face up. Then he started laughing.  
  
"Are you still laughing at me?" she asked as her eyes narrowed in suspicion.  
  
"No, I just can't help laughing at the name Hugh Higgenbotham, especially now that I know what he looks like."  
  
Thea gasped in outrage and tried to shake him. "That is NOT funny Adam!" she almost shouted, but he just laughed harder.  
  
"Oh God, that would have made you Theadora Higgenbotham!" he choked out as he wrapped his arms around her and leaned back against the door, still shaking with laughter. "That man should thank his lucky stars you only knocked him out instead of killing him," he managed to say and Thea's lips began to twitch in spite of herself.  
  
"That's true," she admitted and chuckled.  
  
Taking a deep breath, Adam tried to rein in his amusement. "What a fool! What a complete and utter ass!" he said and another brief burst of laughter escaped. "How could that poor excuse for a man possibly think he'd ever be able to handle a woman like you?" He shook his head and straightened up to guide her toward the inner office door with his arm around her shoulders.  
  
"Damn, I swear some people are just too stupid to live," he said with laughter still in his voice as he opened the door and pushed her through. When he followed her out and turned to lock it behind them her brows rose.  
  
"You're coming home with me now?" she asked in surprise.  
  
"Yes," he answered as he offered her his arm. "I don't think Mr. Higgenbotham will be bothering us again, but I don't want you going anywhere alone until I'm sure he's gone." He gave her a sharp look. "And that means you will not leave the house for any reason without an escort AND Minnie with you," he said firmly.  
  
Thea didn't reply, knowing that none was expected or needed. She just mentally sighed and resigned herself to the inevitable as they crossed the street and hurried home.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
CONVERSATIONS  
  
Chapter 73  
  
Adam stepped out the front door of the ranch house and closed the door firmly behind him. He stood there for a while, looking up at the bright blue sky and then around at the trees changing color. Taking a deep breath, he started for the barn, knowing Hoss was in there working.  
  
The door was open, so he heard Hoss swearing under his breath even before he entered the barn. He quietly walked in and settled himself on a bale of hay then had to hold back a bark of laughter when the big man let out a cry of anger and kicked the wagon wheel he was working on.  
  
"Damn it!" he yelled and Adam's brows rose. For Hoss to use that strong a word he had to be absolutely furious. No wonder Dora had said even Pa was being cautious about approaching him.  
  
"Have you tried applying heat?" Adam said quietly and his brother swung around to stare at him in surprise for a moment. Then he put a hand up to rub his forehead.  
  
"Shoulda thought of that," Hoss said, deeply annoyed. "Never been much when it came to smarts, but I shoulda tried that a while ago." He stomped over to a worktable up against a sidewall and came back with a kerosene torch and a match safe.  
  
Adam leaned back against a slated stall wall as he watched his brother light the torch and then crouch down to touch the flame to the stubborn lug nut. He folded his arms across his chest and yawned.  
  
"You been workin' too much again?" Hoss asked and the other man laughed.  
  
"That depends on what you mean by too much," Adam joked, glad that his brother seemed willing to talk. "No, I can usually handle that without too much trouble. I'm just tired because Thea's been pretty demanding lately."  
  
Hoss carefully set the small torch down and tried to loosen the nut again. "That's got it!" he almost crowed then put the torch out before turning the wrench again.  
  
"Demanding?" he asked as the nut fell and he began to wrestle the wheel off. Adam briefly thought of offering to help, but decided he shouldn't.  
  
"Uh huh, demanding my...attention. She usually gets this way in the fourth month."  
  
"She been talking your ear off, then?" Hoss was smiling with satisfaction as the stubborn wheel came off and he rolled it over to stand up against the wall.  
  
"Actually no...that's not the kind of attention I'm talking about," Adam answered as he yawned again.  
  
Hoss turned to him, his expression puzzled until his older brother gave him a pointed look.  
  
"Oh," the big man said as his face reddened slightly. He turned quickly away to bring out the new wheel and Adam patiently waited. He was sure more questions were coming.  
  
The new wheel slid on without any trouble and Hoss carefully began to screw the lug nuts back in place. Adam was close to nodding off when the other man cleared his throat.  
  
"So you don't think that's dangerous?"  
  
Adam smiled at his brother's broad back. "No, not at all. At least not until the eighth month."  
  
Hoss threw him a quick look over his shoulder. "That long?" he asked almost hopefully as he picked up the wrench. "Is that what Thea says?"  
  
"Of course," Adam answered quietly, pleased with how the conversation was going. "Dora's in her third month, right?" he asked and his brother nodded.  
  
"Hmmm...I would think that since those two are so much alike, you'll be finding out just how demanding they can be next month," he said with a grin, not being able to resist needling his brother again. Then his grin turned into a smile when the big man chuckled.  
  
"You're foolin' with me again, aren't you?" Hoss said as he stood, finished with his task, and figuring out what his brother was doing.  
  
"Yes I am," Adam laughed and slapped his hands to his thighs as he got to his feet. "And speaking of Dora, I'm sure Thea is finished with her examination so I better get her home before she's after me again."  
  
Hoss grinned, but was still looking at his brother narrowly, not quite believing. Adam shook his head.  
  
"You know I don't lie. I swear to you she cornered me in the tack room yesterday afternoon, and then woke me up at two o'clock in the morning!" Hoss started laughing.  
  
"And I had just gone to bed at one!" The big man laughed even harder as he clapped Adam on the back, making him stagger slightly as they stepped out of the barn.  
  
"That must be a terrible trial to you," Hoss said, coming as close to sarcasm as he ever did.  
  
"Yeah, but I'm tough...I can take it," Adam answered with a resigned air while they crossed the front yard and his brother shook his big head.  
  
"Glad to see not everythin' about you has changed," Hoss paused with his hand on the front doorknob.  
  
"What hasn't changed?"  
  
"You're just as full of it now as you ever were, big brother!" was the answer as Hoss opened the door and laughed his deep, booming laugh. Grinning, Adam followed him into the house and for once didn't argue the point.  
  
The two women were coming down the stairs side-by-side and when they saw their men come in Thea stopped and her eyes went immediately to her husband's. He quickly nodded and she gave him her usual brilliant smile.  
  
Dora had hurried on to rush up to Hoss and hug him tightly. To her surprise he didn't push her away, and to her delight he hugged her back. She sighed with contentment, resting her head sideways against his chest.  
  
"How'd she do, Thea?" Hoss asked.  
  
"Everything is fine, but she really has to get more exercise," Thea answered, glad for the opportunity to tackle the other problem.  
  
"You mean she shouldn't be takin' it easy?" the big man was honestly puzzled.  
  
"Well, she shouldn't be bailing hay or anything like that, but she does need to keep in shape. Giving birth is physically demanding," Thea answered as she slipped her arm around Adam's waist as he automatically lifted his over head to hug her shoulders tightly.  
  
"All right," Hoss answered. "If you say so." The other three sighed silently with relief.  
  
"I already talked to Dora about it and she knows what she can and can't do," Thea said quickly, heading off a string of specific questions from him. "Just relax, Hoss, everything is perfectly normal and on schedule. If you keep worrying so much you'll be a nervous wreck by the time the baby comes." She laughed. "There will be plenty of time for that AFTER the birth."  
  
Hoss gave her a small smile as Dora and Adam laughed with her.  
  
"She's right," Adam offered. "The two of you should be enjoying this time alone together. In a few months you won't get that opportunity very often."  
  
Hoss nodded, then looked down at the top of Dora's head before dropping a quick kiss there. Dora looked startled for a second then gave Adam and Thea a huge smile and mouthed "Thank you."  
  
"Well, we better get going and rescue Ted from the clutches of our five," Adam said. "He's been alone with them all afternoon." He looked around, suddenly realizing Ben wasn't there.  
  
"Where did Pa take off to?" he asked.  
  
"Nowhere," Ben answered as he came down the stairs. Thea hurried up to hug him tightly, and then kiss his cheek. He smiled down into her amused eyes.  
  
"Yes, I knew something was up and made myself scarce," he whispered to her as he bent his head down to kiss her cheek. She raised a hand to cover her smile when their eyes met in understanding. He offered her his arm and she took it as Adam smiled and felt his heart fill at the closeness he saw between his father and his wife. Then he followed Hoss and Dora out the front door.  
  
He climbed up into the buggy after giving Dora a tight hug and almost being crushed by Hoss's huge arms. Ben helped Thea up then turned away as Hoss hurried up to her. He motioned for her to bend down and she did to receive a quick kiss on her cheek before he whispered something in her ear. Then he was gone and they were on their way home.  
  
Neither of them spoke until they were almost halfway there and Thea answered the question Adam knew he didn't have to ask.  
  
"He said 'Thank you'," she informed her husband and he didn't comment. He just pulled her more firmly up against his side and they both laughed softly thinking about the "sweet and thoughtful idiot" they loved with all their hearts.  
  
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Early the next Saturday afternoon Thea was busy in her kitchen, having felt the urge to bake. She was moving around the kitchen like a whirlwind, taking things out of the oven and popping others in. Rows of baked goods covered the counters and the table where Barbara was sitting whipping egg whites in a shallow dish with a fork.  
  
The twins were also at the table. Annalise was gently putting cookies in large ceramic cookie jars while Alexander was carefully wrapping loaves of bread in brown paper. The triplets were corralled in a corner of the kitchen in a railed off area Adam had set up. Matthew was crawling around energetically on the padded canvas that covered the floor and playing briefly with various toys that were scattered around. Benjamin was standing at the railing, holding on with both hands, and watching all the activity going on around him, while Thomas was curled up in the middle of the canvas sound asleep and hugging his favorite blanket.  
  
Everyone awake looked toward the doorway that led to the hall when they heard the front door open. "Hello!" they heard Stu calling and Thea smiled. The young man still felt a little uncomfortable with just walking into their house.  
  
"We're in the kitchen, Stu!" she yelled and Barbara laughed softly, loving the warm, hospitable atmosphere that anyone could immediately feel when stepping through the door.  
  
Stu's quick footsteps came down the front hallway and Benjamin started bouncing up and down, trying to see over the railing. The young man came slowly into the room and immediately turned to the right to pick him up when the baby called his name. Then he blushed slightly and gave Thea an apologetic glance.  
  
"Uh...may I?" he said and Thea laughed.  
  
"Of course! Don't be silly!" she said and waved him toward the table. "Have a seat."  
  
His dark eyes took in her wide, welcoming smile and he smiled just as widely back. Thea mentally nodded with satisfaction - they would all break down his resistance eventually.  
  
Barbara was watching him too, and noted how handsome he was when he lost that wary look and relaxed. She nodded toward the chair directly across from her and he hurried to obey her unspoken command and sat down there.  
  
"What are you up to?" She asked as she continued to whip the egg whites into a thick froth.  
  
"Not much, just moved into a room over the Sage Brush," he answered and looked down at Benjamin when the child reached up to stroke his smoothly shaven cheek with one hand. The baby stared, seemingly fascinated by the contrast in their skin colors. Then he chuckled and said, "Pretty!" making Stu blush with embarrassment.  
  
The others laughed and Benjamin's attention was caught by the brisk motion of Barbara's arm and he stared silently at her for a while. She breathed a sigh of relief when the concoction started forming stiff peaks and Thea came to take the dish from her while dropping a kiss on the woman's cheek. She turned to Stu then.  
  
"Would you like some coffee?" she asked and hurried to get it for him when he nodded as he wrapped his arms around the baby in his lap. Benjamin was still staring at Barbara and she started laughing when he tried to climb up on the table to get to her.  
  
Stu laughed with her and stood to hand the baby over the table as Thea brought his coffee. She patted him on the shoulder.  
  
"Don't feel slighted Stu, Benjamin has a very short attention span and a big crush on Barbara."  
  
The young man shook his head, watching the way the child snuggled up against the woman sitting across from him. Benjamin gave her his most charming smile and was rewarded by a kiss on the forehead. He sighed with contentment and didn't pay any attention when they heard the front door open again.  
  
Several men's voices could be heard, the loudest one being Joe's as he led the way down the front hall. Adam's four deputies followed closely and they were all smiling as they came through the door.  
  
"What smells so good?" was the first thing Joe said as he bent down to pick up Matthew and the deputies seated themselves around the table at Thea's nod.  
  
"Take your pick!" she answered her young brother-in-law and he smiled as he came to give her a one-armed hug and a quick kiss on the cheek.  
  
"Are you alright?" she whispered while he was still bent over her and he tightened his arm around her again as he nodded.  
  
"I'll be fine," he whispered back, looking into her eyes steadily and her face brightened, glad to see he was handling Joan's defection well. He turned away after cupping her cheek gently with one hand for a moment and moved over to the table to sit next to Nate.  
  
Annalise slid out of her chair and sidled up to the tall, blonde man and held a cookie out to him. He laughed as he picked her up and settled her in his lap. She smiled shyly at him while holding the cookie to his lips and he took a small bite. Grinning down into her emerald-green eyes, he thanked her and told her to finish the cookie as Thea came to distribute cups and to pour coffee.  
  
Her twin had also abandoned his chair, but had chosen to climb over the railing and was curled up around his little brother who had slept through all the noise. His eyelids fluttered down and he was soon asleep with one arm around Thomas.  
  
Conversations formed and shifted as everyone helped themselves to whatever was available on the table and Thea took a break after putting cake pans in the oven. She sat down next to Dylan and was momentarily surprised when that young man turned slightly red when her arm brushed against his. She wondered about that for a few moments, but then looked up when she heard Nate saying her name.  
  
"What got into you today, Thea?" he laughed. "You've got enough stuff here to feed an army."  
  
She laughed in response. "I just woke up with the urge to bake this morning and gave into it."  
  
"And we're very thankful you did!" John said with enthusiasm and a full mouth as everybody laughed, comfortable in the warm, fragrant kitchen, pleased to be part of this family of friends.  
  
Thea sighed with contentment and leaned to the side to take a look at Benjamin, happily wrapped in Barbara's arms. "I think you have a definite conquest there," she teased her friend and the woman smiled wistfully as she tightened her hold on his small, warm body.  
  
"You really miss your daughter and grandson, don't you?" she asked and Barbara nodded.  
  
"We haven't had a letter from her in months. The last I heard from Stephanie, Bill had lost another job and Oscar had a bad case of the flu."  
  
"Maybe when Sam gets back you should go see her," Thea suggested, her brow furrowed with worry for the lovely young woman whom everyone thought had married badly.  
  
"I guess I should, but I hate to just show up and Bill will have a fit if I write to tell them I'm coming."  
  
Thea sighed with frustration, wishing there was something she could do. "If only he hadn't dragged her away to Boulder," she was saying when everyone turned toward the door to the hall.  
  
"Good Lord!" Adam said with a smile, and stepped aside to let Ted through.  
  
Without thinking, Thea put one hand on Dylan's shoulder as she got to her feet and felt him stiffen at her touch again before rushing up to throw herself into her husband's arms. Adam had braced himself and wasn't knocked back at all as he laughed.  
  
Ted patted her on the head as he skirted around the couple and moved around the table to take the chair she had just vacated. He gave Barbara a warm smile and reached to smooth Benjamin's dark hair down. The two adults had become fast friends ever since Adam had disappeared and he couldn't help noting again how lovely she was.  
  
Thea went up on her toes and tugged Adam's head down to kiss him as he hugged her tightly. "I can see you've been very, very busy," he whispered in her ear and smiled when she shivered at his warm breath. The papers in his hand crackled as he let her go and she hurried off to put her arms around her brother from behind and hugged him tightly.  
  
Adam cleared his throat and all conversation ceased as everyone gave him their attention.  
  
"Well folks I have some wonderful news for you. The Earlystown investigation is over and Stu and Dylan have been cleared."  
  
Applause and cheers broke out and the two men mentioned smiled at each other in relief.  
  
"What was the official verdict?" Dylan asked when he could be heard.  
  
"'Murder by arson, perpetrated by a person or persons unknown'," Adam answered. "Seemingly, the investigators consider your testimony to be a hallucination."  
  
The handsome young man frowned. "How stupid can they get? We all know who did it, for God's sake!"  
  
Adam nodded. "Yes WE do, but seemingly they just can't bring themselves to entertain the idea that the killer could be a woman." He shook his head as he handed the report to Dylan. Stu immediately stood and came to read over his friend's shoulder.  
  
Everyone else was still watching Adam, sensing there was more he intended to say.  
  
"I also received notice today that I'm expected to go to Bentwood Junction the day after tomorrow and look the new sheriff over." He turned to his second in command. "You'll be in charge while I'm gone, Nate."  
  
The blonde man just nodded, and then grinned when Annalise slid out of his lap and trotted up to her father. Adam automatically picked her up and smiled when she pulled his head down sideways, to kiss his cheek. Her solemn expression said she could sense her father was not happy about leaving town, even if it was for just one day.  
  
"Are you riding or taking the train?" Joe asked.  
  
"Onyx can use the exercise, so I think I'll be riding."  
  
"Oh, if you were taking the train we could have gone together. I'm heading to Unionville Monday to take care of some business for Pa," his youngest brother said and Adam shook his head again as he put Annalise down and she skipped back to Nate.  
  
"Riding will actually be quicker and I'd like to get back as soon as possible," he answered and Joe just nodded as he turned his attention back to the baby in his lap.  
  
Thea was bent over the oven with the door open as she reached in to test the cake. Then she turned around to give him a wide smile. Conversation started up again as he came to put an free arm around her.  
  
"I'm sure everything will be fine," she said and he tightened his hold as he looked around the room. He sighed.  
  
"No doubt everything will be," he said quietly. "I just wish Wes and Charlie were still here," he added and tried to shake off his deep feeling of disquiet. He briefly thought about sending Nate in his place, but knew he would have to go himself eventually and decided it was best to get this trip over while things seemed to be quiet and there was very little notice.  
  
He sighed again as he gave Thea one more quick squeeze before turning away to find an empty chair at the table and quietly listen to the animated conversations. But that faint feeling of disquiet wouldn't go away and he found his attention wandering for the rest of the afternoon.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
OVER THE EDGE  
  
Chapter 74  
  
Thea had been jumpy all day and didn't exactly know why. The only excuse she could think of was the sudden appearance of Hugh, a person she had hoped she would never lay eyes on again. The fact that Adam had gone to Bentwood Junction that morning didn't help either. She felt badly unnerved and was beginning to be annoyed with herself as she sighed and continued filling canning jars. A large pot of water was coming to a boil on the stove and the sweet, tangy fragrance of peaches filled the kitchen.  
  
She took a deep breath to try and calm her nerves and when she did she happened to glance out the back door. Her eyes widened in shock and she stood there frozen for a moment. Smoke was pouring out of the cracks in the hayloft shutters and her mind went blank for a moment, refusing to believe what she was seeing.  
  
The sound of one of the ponies screaming reached her ears and suddenly she could move again. She ran across the kitchen, burst out the back door, and up to a tall pole that had a bell at the top. Grabbing the rope, she unwound it from the cleat on the side and yanked on it as hard as she could, over and over again. When she heard voices yelling and the sound of running feet, she abandoned the bell and ran for the barn.  
  
Her heart was beating wildly with fear as she rolled the large door open and ran inside. The first stall she reached held Ruby and the chestnut Morab was surprisingly calm. She was just standing there, as though waiting for someone to let her out.  
  
"Oh good girl!" she said to the horse and when she swung the stall door open Ruby just trotted out of the barn as though this was an everyday occurrence. Thea watched her go and hurried to the other side of the barn where the ponies were stalled.  
  
Both ponies were racing around frantically and didn't stop when the doors opened. Thea had to carefully enter and chase them out that door and then the barn door. The two ran to Ruby who was calmly standing in the far corner of Thea's kitchen garden and helping herself to anything that caught her fancy.  
  
People had arrived, many of them carrying buckets and two lines had already formed, one starting at the well and one at the backyard pump. Others came into the barn and Thea motioned for them to get out, telling them the only stock that had been in the barn was the horses.  
  
They all dashed out of the barn, coughing on the thickening smoke, and Thea stopped halfway to the house to look around. The deputies were there as well as most of their neighbors. Roy and Nate were organizing the bucket brigades and then to her surprise, Ben and Hoss appeared. The two men stopped to ask her if she was all right and when she nodded they hurried off to join the rest.  
  
Thea stood there for a few moments to catch her breath and spotted Ted working the pump as other people came running carrying ladders and shovels. She had just started for the house when the hayloft seemed to explode and the flames rose in a deafening roar.  
  
Voices were shouting, the huge flames were rumbling, and the dry wood cracked sharply sounding like gunshots as she hurried toward the house. The twins were at the back door, looking at the barn burning with huge eyes. She quickly reassured them that the ponies and Ruby were safe and took them outside to where the two were standing by the Morab.  
  
"Now you two stay right here. Don't you leave this spot for anything, you hear?" she said hurriedly and the two children nodded solemnly, their arms around their ponies' necks.  
  
"Remember, stay right here," she repeated and hurried back to the house, up the steps, and in the back door.  
  
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Adam wasn't even within sight of Virginia City when he saw the column of smoke rising ahead of him. His heart clenched painfully and he urged Onyx into a gallop, praying that it wasn't his house that was burning. When he was finally close to the north edge of town he had Onyx racing, going as fast as the horse could manage.  
  
When they turned into the drive he could see the smoking ruins of his barn surrounded by a huge crowd of people straight ahead. Everyone was talking so no one heard him coming. He pulled Onyx up abruptly and stayed in the saddle to whistle his piercing whistle.  
  
"Quiet!" he shouted at the top of his voice and the entire crowd turned toward him as they fell silent. The babies in the nursery were wailing so loudly they could be heard clearly.  
  
Adam let out cry of rage. "The fire was just a diversion!" he shouted as he vaulted from the saddle and ran for the house.  
  
Everyone stood frozen and stared as Adam raced up the back steps. He threw the inner door open so hard the glass shattered, dashed in, and turned to the left toward the stairs. The only sounds that could be heard were muted - the crackling of the dying fire, the horses snorting from the smoke, a few soft coughs. And then they heard Adam scream in anguish.  
  
They all flinched at that sound, and Annalise burst into tears. Alexander put his arms around his sister and the two children stood there trembling as every man broke and rushed toward the door.  
  
Ben was the first in with Ted right behind him and as they rushed through the door and up the stairs Ted vaguely noted that the older man was in excellent physical shape. They could hear the babies crying pitifully and when they entered the second floor hallway they saw Adam run out of the nursery. But he didn't stop or even look at them, he just turned to the left and raced away, heading for the front stairs.  
  
Ted stopped at the nursery door, while Ben kept going after Adam. The door had swung halfway closed and he pushed it open carefully. Thea lay on the floor facing and up against the opposite wall. She was curled into a fetal position with her arms wrapped around her legs, protecting the child she carried. He rushed in and fell to his knees, noting blood on the back of her head and a dark stain in the middle of her lower back. The babies had fallen silent.  
  
Putting a hand out to feel for a pulse on the side of her neck, he turned his head to look over his shoulder when he heard Nate's voice in the hall.  
  
"All of you, spread out and search the house," he said and hurried into the room. He came to kneel next to Ted while the rest of the men scattered.  
  
"Is she alive?" he asked, his eyes wide and his mouth grim.  
  
"Yes," Ted answered quickly. "Please go to the linen closet and bring back two blankets."  
  
Nate was nodding as he looked up and was about to stand when he froze. "Oh my God," he groaned and Ted quickly turned his head in that direction to see what Nate was staring at. He gasped - Thomas's crib was empty.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED... 


End file.
